SC2: Hayate's Magical What If Story
by Knight of L-sama
Summary: AU sequel. Hayate's Mission: Explore the Andromeda Galaxy and deal with the affections of the original creator of the Tome. My mission: Assimilate my college class material into a fanfic while exploring Hayate's potential love interests. R&R!
1. Allocating Scarce Resources

**Shard Card 2: Hayate's Story**

Prologue-Premise

"I'm sorry, I'm afraid I'm not sure I quite understand what it is that you're implying." General Hayate frowned as she regarded the older man behind the desk. "Are you... _demoting_ me, sir?"

"Nothing of the sort. Merely reassigning you temporarily to where your skills could be utmost use."

Hayate withheld her snort of disgust. She was getting demoted _and_ moved. Great. "May I ask why you felt it was best to place me on this assignment, sir?"

The superior officer intertwined his fingers, his faded blue eyes piercing the air to reach Hayate's without so much as an additional effort on his part. "General Hayate, no one here will contest that you have served the Ground Forces well, but this is a delicate mission and not many can be spared."

_'So you're sparing me? How absurd.' _Hayate wasn't the sort to be arrogant about her position or role in TSAB, but she knew they couldn't afford to lose her. Rather, they could not afford for her to turn against them. Well, perhaps they could, but it would not be pretty for either side. Clearing her throat as she tried to stand at her full height, meager as that was, Hayate continued, "Sir, I do not believe you have given me so much as the outline of this mission that you speak of, so that I may judge the merits of my presence for myself."

"Very well, General Hayate. I will give you the long and short of it. With the additional gas mileage in our latest cruisers, we were finally able to breach into a galaxy on the brink of our known map of civilization. We, the Board was unanimous in this decision, would like you to head the expedition to explore this new galaxy, reporting any findings, with extensive details regarding any intelligent lifeforms. There is no time limit, as we wish for you to gather as much information and send back reports on a weekly basis, even if you find nothing remarkable."

Hayate said nothing as she considered this. Those on the Board that hated her would want her gone from their ranks indefinitely on this wild goose chase void of the goose to chase. Those that moderately approved of her (those that outright loved her were very close to her already through one of her other friends or her own past) would want her on this mission to keep her away from the grim reality of the TSAB headquarters as well as to be reassured that at least one competent person explored the newest frontier.

For the former side, an added bonus was that if anything _did _happen of the nature of an "accidental death", their hands would be clean of any murders and their desire to have her ousted would still prevail.

Of course it had been a unanimous decision.

"General Hayate, will you comply with orders without causing any trouble?"

"Of course, sir. May I request my own team?"

"No more than two mages above AAA class. We cannot spare everyone for this."

Hayate suddenly cursed her fate as she realized that even among her Knights, there were more than two above AAA class. In fact, even the 'weakest', Shamal, was an S ranked healer.

She would have to pick favorites.

"Are you quite certain, sir? Not even, perhaps, three?"

"Only two, General Hayate. We are aware that you have connections with many more high-ranked mages than that. But we cannot afford to dispatch all of them on such a non-critical mission."

So he admitted it was non-critical. Hayate withheld her sigh. "And how large can my overall team be, sir?"

"That may be left up to your discretion, General Hayate, as you will be responsible for assuring that your team stays alive. You will suffer the usual consequences befitting of any malconduct during a mission. If one of your men dies..."

"I will take responsibility," Hayate instantly finished.

"Do you have any other questions, General Hayate?"

Hayate thought a moment. "When must I depart, sir?"

"Within a week. It's best to go now while there is a lull in critical attention activities."

"Yes, sir. Then I wish to voice no other concerns or questions for the time being."

"You are dismissed."

"Sir." Hayate saluted as he stood up and she turned and walked out the door.

Her expression was void of feeling as she walked down the corridors to her apartment suite. When others saw her and greeted her, she smiled and greeted back, but she gave no vibes welcoming idle chatter.

When she was finally able to close her bedroom door behind her, her back slid down the length of the door until she was sitting with her knees drawn up to her chin.

"Great," she muttered darkly. "Just great. Who will I choose? Who can be spared? And who will still be an asset?"

Ch. 1- Allocating Scarce Resources

"Ah... Instructor Takamachi, Enforcer Fate, could I have a word with the two of you?"

Nanoha and Fate exchanged glances at Hayate's formality, but sent Nanoha's star pupils away so that Hayate might speak freely. The cafeteria was isolated at this point, although one or two stragglers still remained.

"What is it, Hayate-chan?" Nanoha smiled encouragingly. "Did something come up?"

Hayate bit her lip, suddenly wondering if she should even ask. They were both so happy now. They had everything they could ever want- the marriage, the kids, the positions, the perfect balance of home and work life. What right did she have to pull them away with her into the endless abyss?

Fate placed a hand on her shoulder. "You know we're always here for you, Hayate."

A fresh wave of guilt coursed through her veins and she flushed, ashamed of herself. "No... no, it's nothing important really. Sorry for calling you out like that. Um, what are you two doing next week? The usual?"

Fate frowned, obviously not buying into this, but she answered, "I thought you would have heard by now. I'm acting as on-board supervisor for Teana for her first S-class mission."

Hayate's eyes widened. "But Teana isn't an S-class mage... is she?"

"No, she stopped at AA. But she is fully capable of leading S-class missions, and that's what I've been assigned to prove through video footage and my own report. It's a hassle, but it can't be helped. Well, I'm happy to help at least."

Hayate nodded slowly. "When do you leave? How long of a mission is it?"

"Including travel time... we'll be leaving in a fortnight and be back by... maybe... three months at most. Christmas I think."

"I see." Without missing a beat, Hayate turned to Nanoha. "And you? How is your schedule, Nanoha?"

"Pretty empty, actually. I'm between sets of classes now. The next 'term' doesn't start... well... until the end of the month, I suppose."

Hayate cursed inwardly. Nanoha was a no-go too. Too many people depended on her tutelage to get through the military training and come out as one of TSAB's best and brightest. No, if Hayate had no idea when she could return, she couldn't put Nanoha- or her future students- through that.

"Hayate-chan, really, tell us what's wrong. What happened?"

Hayate smiled cheerily at Nanoha. "Oh, it's nothing really. I was thinking of planning a vacation in a couple of weeks and seeing who would be able to go. Ah, but don't worry about it. Really. If TSAB needs you, TSAB needs you. There's no avoiding work sometimes. I'll see you two around, I suppose. I have to take care of some things myself."

"Hayate..." Fate reached out a hand towards her, but it fell limply back to her side when Hayate took a step back.

Hayate bowed her head to them both before turning and heading back to her room.

--

Roughly five hours later, Signum was looking for her mistress and finally found her in an otherwise empty conference room. Signum kept silent as she looked around at the scribbles present on nearly every board. She hadn't thought handwritten boards were still used at TSAB, but Hayate was resourceful when it came to finding otherwise obselete things. She noticed the names and ranks of several people she recognized and wondered why Hayate, who knew all of this by heart, was writing it down. Not to mention, the younger woman was also mumbling to herself as she wrote even more details, her back turned to the door.

"Mistress Hayate?"

"... if Shamal went with me, she'd have to forego the benefits of the medical facilities she has here as well as the opportunity to help the people here who get injured far too often... not to mention separating her from Signum woul-"

"Mistress Hayate!" Signum placed a hand on Hayate's shoulder, jerking her out of her daze. "Are you all right?"

"What? Oh, Signum." Hayate nodded and returned to looking at the flow chart. "I'm fine. Just doing some... executive planning."

"By hand?"

"Yes, I found it's easier to spread my thoughts out like this rather than strain my eyes on multiple screens. Were you looking for me? I'm sorry. What did you need?"

Signum frowned, not answering until her own questioning thoughts were answered. "What are you planning?"

"Hm? Oh... I'll tell you when I've come to a decision. Don't worry about it just yet."

"Mistress Hayate. If something has happened... A new development..."

"Why does everyone assume something is wrong?" Hayate laughed. "The higher-ups are finally letting me have a vacation, but since all my friends I would take along for the ride are so well integrated into the system, I'm only allowed to bring two of them with me, so I have to narrow down my list."

"Vacation...? Now?"

Hayate nodded. "There are no wars directly involving TSAB at the moment, no unexpected exposure of magic on unmagical planets... perfect time, don't you think?"

"Yes, but... you never mentioned that you were planning a vacation to us before now... how long have you been trying to petition for a vacation?"

"Oh, not long, not long. I didn't want to tell you until I had it verified." Hayate frowned. "Was there a particular reason why you were looking for me? I assume you were looking for me?"

Signum nodded. "It's time for dinner, Mistress Hayate."

"Oh no, already?" Hayate looked at the clock, obviously distraught. "It completely slipped my mind... oh, I'll finish up really quickly then. Rein! Save what's on these boards to a new folder marked with today's date."

"Ah, Zafira cooked tonight. You needn't worry."

Hayate stopped short in surprise. She turned and said, "/Zafira/? But he never cooks."

"Shamal dared him to after she was teased. I tried a little; it's actually quite good."

"It's already done?"

"Ah... yes, Mistress Hayate. But there's no rush. Keroberos showed us a way to keep things warm for a very long time."

"Oh, what's that? Rein, did you get everything?"

"Yes, Hayate!" Rein grinned proudly, even though it was such a mundane request.

Hayate nodded and quickly cleaned off all the boards before hurrying towards the door with Signum in tow. Nothing more was spoken of the 'vacation' Hayate had planned.

But later that night, after everyone else was asleep, Hayate stayed up in the living room, working through more graphs and reasoning.

As the sun rose the following morning, everyone in the Hayate residence was awoken by a strangled groan of frustration. Hayate slumped into her chair, letting the pencil clatter to the ground as she rubbed her temples.

"Maybe I'll just go alone..."

"Hayate..." Hayate turned to see Vita sleepily coming out of the room they shared. "Were you up all night? That's bad for you."

Hayate merely sighed and closed her eyes again. "I know, Vita-chan. I know."

"What're you doing?" Vita looked at the sprawled out sheets laid out before her mistress. "What is all this?"

"My homework." Hayate gave a tired smile. "My superior officer gave me a problem that I can't seem to find an answer to."

"What problem is it?" Vita was becoming more awake now, curious as to what was bothering Hayate. "Can I help?"

"You wouldn't- well, I suppose you would understand, but it's all right, Vita-chan. This is just something I have to do. It's still early, you should try to get some more sleep."

Vita shook her head vigorously, setting her expression into a stubborn pout. "If Hayate is up, Vita will stay up too."

Hayate laughed at that, a tired but still distinct laugh, and patted Vita's hair. "Thank you, Vita-chan. I'll go make us some warm milk, hm?" Hayate stood up, frowning as her legs nearly failed her, but gathered the papers into a neat stack before going into the kitchen.

Vita was reading the topmost page and was surprised to find her name. "H-Hey, Hayate! Why... why am I part of your problem?"

"Don't worry about it," Hayate repeated through a yawn. "I'm still thinking it through."

Vita hurried after Hayate and declared, "Oi, Hayate! I'll help you whenever you need it, okay? You don't even have to ask!"

"Thank you, Vita-chan. But it's all right, really. I'll figure something out." Hayate smiled and handed Vita the customary mug of milk. "There you go, Vita-chan."

"Thank you..." Vita didn't drink for a moment, simply observing Hayate's facial features. She looked so worn out... "What're you worried about?"

"I'm worried about worrying all the people that would worry about me."

"...Eh?"

Hayate giggled and shook her head. "I need some fresh air... will you come with me, Vita-chan?"

"Y-yeah!"

They went out to the balcony and Vita let the silence between them settle as they watched the sky change colors with the rising of the sun.

Hayate murmured, "My friends are too deeply ingrained into the system. _I'm_ too deeply ingrained into the system. I never really thought about how dependent TSAB has become on our firepower, our potential, our magical talent. You know, you would think that after working here for 15-20 years, they wouldn't have any reason to be displeased with us anymore, but some grudges die hard I suppose. Or maybe it's not out of begrudging at all- that's just how I see it."

Vita considered saying something, but she didn't really understand and she didn't want Hayate to clam up again.

Soon, Hayate continued, "Everybody I would choose would have to give up what they're doing now to go with me for God only knows how long. It's inevitable, so I have to think of what they can do for me instead. What the best arrangement would be, even if it's unorthodox. If I prize firepower and tactical skills, Nanoha and Signum might be the best choices. If I want the best healers or speedy messengers, Shamal and Fate might be good, but both are occupied at the moment. I could use Tomoyo and Erio instead, but I'd have to summon Erio here first to do that, and Tomoyo... well, the school can do with a different nurse for a while. Really, since neither Tomoyo nor Erio are S-class, I /could/ have all four come with me, but... it's troublesome."

Finally, it dawned on Vita what Hayate was implying. "You're going somewhere and you can only take a few people?"

Hayate nodded. "I can only take two other S+ ranked mages and the rest is at my discretion."

"Oh... I wouldn't be of help to you I suppose. Compared to the others."

"It's not that, Vita-chan. I'm not slighting you in the least. It's just that... Of my children, I'm more attached to you as 'the youngest' so I don't want you getting hurt... even more than the others. It's a silly whim of mine I know, but..." Hayate sighed, changing her tactics. "If I take Nanoha, someone she trusts, like you, should be here to watch over the ones she'd otherwise be training. Likewise, if I were to take Tomoyo, Shamal would be free to keep an eye on her post at the school as well."

"What about Zafira?"

"... As much as it kills me to say it, that may be overdoing my allocation of firepower without adding anything else. The team balance may suffer as a result."

"What mission is this? It's not top secret, is it?"

"No, it's just not publicized yet." Hayate closed her eyes, allowing herself to explain the full details to Vita. "I'm supposed to be mapping out the latest frontier of our known universe and synthesizing any lifeforms into societies susceptible to TSAB's guidance. Or something to that nature."

"That's not... within your field... is it?"

"Not so much, no. The Intergalatic Negotiations and Cartographers are usually doing it. They'll be coming with me, or rather, I should say I'm coming with them. In case something 'unforeseen' occurs."

"Backup? But then why would they ask you? N-Nanoha would be good for that sort of thing, wouldn't she? Even if was just her..."

"I'm the commanding officer for this mission. I suppose they wanted to make sure they had some on the scene that could restrain Nanoha without hurting themselves unnecessarily should the occassion come up that she overexerted herself again."

"Ah..."

"But this way might be good. Getting out from behind the desk for a while." Hayate inhaled deeply as she tried to think positively. It was an opportunity, not an exile. "Vita-chan, if I ask you to stay here, will you be good and keep an eye on everyone here for me?"

Vita nodded resolutely. "If Hayate wants me to do it, I'll do a Mega-good job of it."

Hayate smiled, leaning down and hugging Vita tightly. "Thank you, Vita-chan. Thank you."

--

At 0900 hours on the Saturday that followed, Hayate's vessel was prepared to disembark. She had explained everything to her friends, and those she had specifically requested had done everything they could so that they would be able to meet her request. With her today were Nanoha and Signum, one of her oldest friends plus one of her most reliable Knights; Tomoyo and Shari, two of her most dependable back-ups; (16-year-old) Vivio and Syn, freshly out of training for their AA and looking for hands-on experience out in the field; and Subaru and Erio for mobile necessities that modern technology couldn't handle. It was a bit of a hodgepodge crew admittedly, but Hayate felt she could make it work and hopefully, she would be able to return them all home in a timely fashion.

Fate had already disembarked with Teana on the aforementioned mission, but Shamal, Vita, and Zafira saw them off at the port. Non-tearful farewells were interrupted by the captain of the ship announcing, "Claudia III, ready for take off! Would all personnel make their way into the vessel at this time. Claudia III, headed due east towards coordinates 193 degrees, 90 arc minutes... first destination in 250 kilo light-years..."

"Well then... take care of each other, all right?" Hayate looked at her Knights again, feeling utterly at a loss for words. She was their mistress, not the other way around. She should be the strong one.

"Mistress Hayate."

Hayate turned towards Signum just as Shamal said, "I know you will be in good hands with Signum, so please leave defending the home to us. We pray for your safe return, but do not hesitate to contact us if there is any trouble."

Hayate nodded and with another deep breath, forced herself to turn away and head towards the ship. Nanoha was waiting for her and smiled as they boarded together.

Another mission, another adventure, another uncertain outcome...

TBC

A/N: Woot! Tried to encorporate what I learned in school, but that's kinda hard at the moment considering we've only had one day of classes and it was mostly going over syllabuses. So as an overview to my "academic" references:

Economics: Scarcity of resources (can only pick 2 S-classed mages) forces Hayate to think critically of how best to allocate her needs (the individual skills of each person) and how to make her set up most efficient (the perfect point on the PPF line). This chapter was, in general, one of Hayate's "economical" dilemna. There was also a bit of general overall thinking about how the abundant "resources" (high-class mages) centred in TSAB gave it an absolute(?) advantage over other places like Hayate's crew on the frontier and that to build a comparative advantage (location on frontier compared to TSAB HQ) Hayate would have to take resources from TSAB without compromising the home team advantage too drastically.

Astronomy, during the last bit with the coordinates and distances, but I didn't exactly try too hard on that one. . I don't even know how expansive TSAB is. .

Um, yeah, couldn't fit in my other classes, but there's still time yet. n.n

As another note, this can be considered a sequel of sorts to Shard Card in that without reading Shard Card, the possibilities executed in this piece are not as profound or gripping, but it is a standalone in that certain liberties have been taken. For example, although in the beginning, though Ruby is still dating Vivio and Syn is merely her best friend, this may change in the typical character growth fashion. Similarly, Reina may be zoned out as Hayate realizes a higher calling that demands... a different partner in her life. Also different in that Sakura and Tomoyo came to Mid-Childa early on, with Hayate having a high school crush on her while they were best friends (they still are, but meh) and Tomoyo considering Hayate more her best friend than Sakura (yeah, the angst madness of Shard Card is obselete in this story, for sake of brighter pastures; you can read SC 1 for your SakuTomo goodness). If I think of anything else, I'll make note of it, but that's the basics. As aforementioned, NanoFate did get married, and Sigmal is still largely prevalent in their respective minds. I'm not going into the whole Yuuno/Arf/Zafira/Kero madness because they aren't a crucial part of this story (ah, ignoring the bit characters again, sorry). And I meant nothing significant by listing Hayate's crew as I did. I have no especial desire to hook Subaru up with Erio or Nanoha with Signum. O.o Any unconventional pairings featured here will be prevalent but not concrete in nature. So you get scenes without the cheating, essentially. :3

That's all! Oh, and unlike SC1, I'll only be posting a chapter (maybe two) a week, unlike every day, so I'll be taking my time hope you still read and review though. :3


	2. It's All Relative

A/N: Ah the mood of the first chapter was indirectly dedicated to Allquall's "Name of War" in such that Hayate is featured as heavily stressed by the demands of what is asked of her (for totally different reasons here, but meh). Also, Syn is the property of Kereko, tho she has become something of a generally-accepted-and-used-OC. Finally, may I remind you that this is only a half-sequel "What is and What Could Be" continuation of the Shard Card universe. **Many things have changed, but many have stayed the same. **So please don't waste your breath telling me that it doesn't fit Shard Card /or/ canon and just enjoy it for what it is- fanfiction by yours truly. With that, let's begin.

P.S. I'm aware that the bit in the beginning with using silver as part of a fuel source and especially as being as plentiful as I say, is a bit of bull, but just consider it a space-filler. And also other discrepancies, but please remember that fanfiction need not be taken wholly seriously.

Disclaimer: I do not own Syn (featured in this chapter) or the characters of MSLN, or Tomoyo (from CCS), or anything else that's not mine.

Shard Card 2: Hayate's Story

"What Is and What If"

Short Summary: As a competant "expendable" TSAB official, Hayate has been assigned to explore the newest frontiers with a hodgepodge team that she handselected for the optimum performance in the long run. She knows not if her prowess is really needed on this seemingly mundane mission, but she will take responsibility for the task at hand regardless.

Chapter 2- It's all Relative

Hayate sighed softly as the soft rumble of Claudia III gently roused her from her slumber. She had caught up on much needed rest and was once more ready to tackle the world- or universe as the case may be- one planetary system at a time. She had her crew, a ship, a goal. Now all she needed was a specific destination and a time frame.

_'We'll need fuel. Our gas tanks may be more efficient now, but that doesn't change that we'll have to refill eventually. Especially if this is a long-term assignment.'_ Half dressed with her jacket lying beside her on her freshly made bed, Hayate poured over several documents and maps at once, locating the nearest and farthest known fuel stations between their current location and the area of the frontier that they would start with.

"This one." Hayate tapped the photo of the planet that she had drawn up. "At 500 kly (kilo-light-years), that should take us close to the border of our known universe. Our fuel supply should be close to depleted by then, but this planet, administered planet 545, is made up of almost nothing _but_ fuel. And I'm sure the occupants wouldn't mind seeing some faces from their far-off beneficiaries. What do you think, Rein? I've never been this far out before. Should be interesting, right? And we can get out and stretch our legs a bit."

Rein was watching Hayate from her shoulder, using said shoulder as a prop for her elbows as most of her body dangled behind Hayate. "Yes! It sounds fun. The natives of this planet are humans too, aren't they?"

Hayate nodded as she scrolled down the info page. "It was first colonized about 135 years ago, back in the Silver Age."

"Silver Age? Did we find a lot of silver?"

"It was already fairly plentiful, but that was when we learned how to incorporate silver into our fuels so that we could recycle the waste, so to speak, into colonial coinage, worth much less without the backing of the government. And then planets like this were found to be loaded with silver, so the Silver Age was all about acquiring more silver as well as refining how best to use it." Hayate paused and then continued on her original thread of thought, "There aren't many colonies, as much of the planet is still untamed, but those in the colonies are once-Midchildan explorers. They may have learned to speak a different language, but the translators in our devices should operate for us just fine, right, Rein?"

Rein nodded, still grinning. "Rein can speak 3500 languages and dialects!"

Hayate laughed. "As expected from the former Tome of the Night Sky. I'll be counting on you."

"Roger!"

As they were laughing about something and nothing at all, Hayate heard a knock at the door. Smiling, she permitted, "It's open; come in."

She heard muffled insistences along the lines of "You go first!" and "No, you go! You're older!" before the door slid open to reveal Syn with Vivio close behind.

Hayate smiled at her two youngest selections for her team, both prodigal children of famous friends of hers. It had been more whim than need, requesting that they join her, but with Nanoha alongside her, she was not wholly concerned with anything that might result from having the two onboard. "Syn-chan, Vivio-chan, good morning. What can I do for the two of you?"

They exchanged looks with each other, likely continuing their petty argument from when they were outside the room. Eventually, Vivio bowed and said, "We, uh, we just wanted to thank you for giving us the opportunity to go on this mission with you. So, um, thank you, General Yagami."

Hayate smiled with amusement as Syn bowed her head as well. "No thanks is necessary you two. If you want to 'thank' me, work to the best of your ability, especially while you're under my watch. Understood?"

"Yes, ma'am!" They were almost like twins, Hayate mused, when they were both nervous at least. _'Time for an ice-breaker.'_ "Are those your official uniforms? Hmm... brown doesn't really seem to suit you two, does it? Hold on just a moment, I want you to try on one of the prototypes I've been testing."

As Hayate stood up to move to the closet, she heard and saw Vivio snickering and grinning, likely in conjunction with the hot-red flush on Syn's cheeks that wildly clashed with her long blue hair. She also heard Syn mumbling, "It took me forever to agree to wear _this_ and now there's something different just around the corner...? God hates me..."

Vivio giggled, whispering loudly to her best friend, "Aunt Hayate knows her clothes though. Anything she recommends, you'll love- 100 percent guaranteed."

"Didn't she design this one too?"

"Here it is!" Hayate grinned as she turned back to face them, two fresh uniforms in her hands. "You're about the right age and stature that you should fill them in quite nicely. Do try them on?"

"Yes, ma'am." Vivio was about to turn away when she realized, about the same time as Syn did, "Or... did you want us to change here?"

Hayate just barely managed to conceal the feral nature of her grin. "Why not? We're all girls here, aren't we?"

Vivio looked at her with open suspicion, which Hayate guessed was from having grown up with Aunt Hayate and knowing full well what she was capable of acting on. She glanced at Syn, who was aware yet blissfully unaware of the true dangers that lay ahead for her.

Syn did, at least, make a feeble attempt to get out of it. "General Yagami, I'm not certain that doing such would be... appropriate."

"Pfft." Hayate grinned as she slung an arm around Syn's and Vivio's necks. "If you're going to call me 'General Yagami' then you had better treat me as a superior officer. And as such, what I say goes. Now strip. Let's see how well you two have grown up over the years."

--The rest of this scene has been omitted at the discretion of a certain bluenette who requested the right to maintain a sense of privacy--

"Hayate-chan, you look like you just ate a canary." Nanoha laughed as she sat down next to Hayate in the cafeteria. "Who'd you grope now?"

Hayate giggled, too pleased to deny the claim. "You've done well with Vivio-chan, Nanoha-chan. She's _very_ healthy, especially for her age."

It took a moment for Nanoha to catch on, but when she did, she merely sighed. "I'm not going to ask _how_ you reached that verdict. But just FMI (for my information), is she wearing the right size bra? She wouldn't let me go shopping with her last time, so I'm a bit worried..."

Hayate flashed a grin. "She was just a little off, but that's probably because she's grown a bit since she bought that bra. No worries, I gave her a new one just in case. Syn, however..." Hayate shook her head sadly, as if she were talking a neighbor's troublemaker of a son. "Sadly, she's a bit of a late bloomer it seems."

Nanoha sighed. "Even Syn-chan? Have you no sense of mercy?"

Hayate pretended to look affronted. "Mercy? Hah! Mercy's my middle name. I-"

"I thought it was Re-"

"Oh hush you," Hayate narrowed her eyes although they still glinted with merriment. "Do you want me to dock your pay?"

Nanoha laughed. "I never said anything," she amended.

Hayate nodded resolutely. "Anyway, I gave them both new uniforms. The brown just wasn't cutting it for them. So if you see them in grayish suits, don't tell them that-"

"They're for support staff? They're smart enough to figure that much out."

"Ah, but I made adjustments," Hayate revealed. "The fringes are specifically tailored for their eyes so it's very distinct. They look cool- they thought so themselves!"

Nanoha laughed again. "I never said the support staff uniform design _wasn't_ 'cool', you know. But as long as they're happy, that's fine."

Deciding to change the subject, Hayate asked, "Have you called Fate-chan yet?"

"Mm." Nanoha nodded. "I called her when we were passing by Andromeda. She's doing fine, as is Teana. They've had smooth sailing so far."

"Ah... where are they now?"

"They're nearing Galaxy West. You know, the one on the other side of Earth from Midchilda."

"Mm. How far out are they going?" Hayate added sheepishly, "I was too preoccupied to ask her for the details myself."

"That's okay. It's not too far, relatively speaking. Their mission destination is in Galaxy West. It has a lot of asteroids and debris in that area though; I hope she'll be all right."

"She'll be just fine, Nanoha-chan." Hayate's smile conveyed her confidence in her fellow Ace. "She'll be fine as long as she knows you're fine."

"Nyahaha... that works the other way around too." A quiet smile graced Nanoha's lips as she looked off into the distance. "How long do you think this mission will be, Hayate-chan?"

"I'm not sure. I'm sorry I'm dragging you away from Fate-chan for such an uncertain amount of time."

"What?" Nanoha snapped out of her daze at Hayate's words. "Oh! No, no, don't be silly, Hayate-chan. That's not what I meant. I was just wondering if you knew. If we can't return quickly then we don't return quickly, that's all. I'm happy you decided to ask me to join you out here. Sometimes I feel we haven't gotten to spend a lot of time together since we're in such different fields within TSAB... so... this is good... this is really good." Nanoha grinned, hardly recognizing that she had placed her hand over Hayate's while she was talking. "Yeah, I miss Fate-chan, of course, but it happens. No sense in dwelling on it, especially while M2D communication still works. Ah... I mean... well... let's just do our best, hm?"

Hayate smiled, acknowledging that Nanoha was merely trying to cheer her up. "Thank you, Nanoha-chan." A companionable silence drifted between them, but when she heard Signum summoning her to the bridge, Hayate slipped her hand out from under Nanoha's and stood up. "Duty calls. Would you do me a favor and make sure everything and everyone is operating at optimum capacity? And maybe organize some team exercises so that if anything does happen, we'll be ready?"

Nanoha nodded. "Of course. And I'll see you around then, Hayate-chan."

"See ya."

--

Hayate arrived on the bridge and Signum quickly noticed. "Is anything wrong?"

Signum explained, "We received an SOS signal from a non-Midchildan registered cruiser. At our current velocity, we would overshoot in less than two minutes, but there are too many obstacles in the way for this vessel to cross it safely. We could release a small cruiser to rescue any survivors, but we would have to stall this one in order to make a safe deployment, although that would delay us. Your orders?"

"Do you even have to ask?" Hayate smiled as she raised her voice. "Halt the engines to avoid passing the foreign vessel! Deploy officers Erio and Tomoyo on Cruzar N200 to rescue any survivors. All Strikers on standby until those deployed return to the ship safely. Send destination coordinates to the Cruzar computer and put up a shot of the target cruiser on the main screen. Show me what we're dealing with here."

Signum reinforced, "You heard her; get to it! Daidoji, Mondial, report to dock 3T, on the double!"

One of the people on staff repeated the orders in technical terms. "Deaccelerating at a rate of 19.47 light hours per second to stall at 60 seconds from now! All hands on deck, brace for stall position. Sending coordinates negative 85 RA degrees, 42 minutes, 13 seconds and 27 degrees, relative to the position of Claudia III when stalled, to Cruzar N200. Uploading data from local satellites to mainframe computer database. Footage incoming!"

While Erio and Tomoyo rushed to the designated dock, Hayate scrutinized the footage and it struck her that there was something very... familiar about the ship that they were stopping for. There was nothing special or glamorous about it, and yet...

"Hayate?"

Hayate looked over at Rein, who also seemed to have a vague sense of recollection at the picture. She smiled. "Let's leave it up to Tomoyo and Erio for now, all right? We'll keep an eye on them from here."

"Yes, Hayate!"

TBC

A/N: My last Astronomy class featured thinking of light years in perspective, and so I actually made new calculations based off of that to determine how fast a ship would have to go to make "intergalactic" travel reasonable. A long-term ship like the Claudia III moves at a projected speed of 3000 light-hours per second. Or, in scientific notation, 3.24 x 10(to the 12th power) km per second, or if you want to write out all the zeros... 3,240,000,000,000 kilometers per second. light-hours are projected in much the same way as cars move in kilometers (or miles, whatever). A small cruiser like Cruzar N200, averages at 60 lh/s, like a car might move 60 mph. Claudia III at normal speed can cross the Milky Way (100,000 light years across) in about 3 days give or take a little. The Cruzar N200 can move from Earth to the nearest star (besides earth) in about 10 min. I hope that makes sense. I made up "Kly" of course, as even traveling at the speed of light (that fastest conceiveable speed of any known material in existence) would take ages to even get to the nearest star. Hope you don't mind me taking liberties. :3

Strictly speaking, going at 3000 lh/s, the Claudia would never have been able to pick up the SOS from something so "close" to them, but... maybe it was a very carefully directed SOS signal or carefully projected radar that picked it up. I dunno.

Also, I'm not that great at directions and degrees in astronomy yet, so bear with me please. It is, however, featured in this chapter as well as the previous one.

Hah! I found a way to input my calculus! Used derivatives and antiderivatives and related calculations to figure out how fast the Claudia III would have to decelerate to go from 3000 lh/s to 0 lh/s within 35040 lh (or 4 light years) in 60 seconds (nice and short). Incredibly fast by our standards, (21 billion km/s) but like I said, this is practical space travel we're talking about here.

Featured from Theatre class was the overall aspect of this story. Aesthetic distance in that you, the reader, to not feel the need to react to Hayate's commands (nor are you physically able to) and so can enjoy it from a distance. Empathy... meh... that's up to you, I suppose, if you empathize with the characters. Pretty mundane stuff happened in this chapter. And ah, suspension of disbelief. Much needed for the aforementioned putting-space-travel-in-reasonable-perspective.

Finally, very remotely hinted in this chapter will be featured in the next.

Aristotle's Mimesis.

That's all the spoiler you get. :D Til next time!

P.S. I also have a class on Mental illnesses, but you probably don't want me to make anyone you know and love schizophrenic... So yes, Astronomy + Theatre + Economics + Calculus FTW!!


	3. Mimesis

A/N: Don't you just hate the way teachers show you one way to do things and then show you an even easier way to do things once you've studied your butt off trying to learn the first way? So yeah, technical changes ahead; explanations at the end as always.

Disclaimer: I don't own what isn't mine to own. The label "M2D", the floating screens that follow the person they belong to, is Satashi's.

Shard Card 2: Hayate's Story

"What Is and What If"

Short Summary: As a competent "expendable" TSAB official, Hayate has been assigned to explore the newest frontiers with a hodgepodge team that she handselected for the optimum performance in the long run. She knows not if her prowess is really needed on this seemingly mundane mission, but she will take responsibility for the task at hand regardless.

**Chapter 3- Mimesis**

"Daidoji, Mondial. Status Report."

"This is Mondial." Erio frowned as he looked to the left while Tomoyo looked to the right. "It appears deserted, but we're making our way to the control deck."

"Good. Keep searching for the one that fired off the S.O.S. signal." Hayate exhaled under her breath. Addressing the people on her own control deck, she asked, "Do we have the readings on the vessel yet? How many lifeforms? Is there damage to the ship or merely lack of fuel?"

"Commander! The life readings have just been processed! There is one confirmed living being, located at the control deck."

"The damage report is in! 78 of the vessel has been compromised! The fuel tank is full of holes- there is no fuel remaining on the vessel. There is damage to the outer shell as well. It is not safe to remove breathing devices!"

Hayate smiled. As long as they had their intelligent devices and barrier jackets, they would be just fine. But the suction from space... "Daidoji, Mondial, stay on guard! Can we get a connection through to the control deck's screens?"

"... Mainframe hacked, operating cameras appearing onscreen. Control deck appearing on the main screen."

Hayate's smile fell as her eyes locked on the spectacle before her. To say that she was merely baffled, would be the understatement of the year. Tomoyo and Erio arrived at the control deck.

"The living being is nowhere in sight. There are, however, four bodies that have been trapped in crystal. They're..." Tomoyo's breathing slowed as she realized what the lifeforms looked like, or rather like _who_. "All four have long since stopped breathing."

If Signum was fazed by the familiarity of the faces onscreen, she made no sign of it as she barked, "Find the living being! It should be near- Daidoji!"

Hayate watched with disbelieving eyes as a ghost of a blur, a shimmer in the air, forced Tomoyo away from the glass coffins until her back was thrown against the control panel. Tomoyo gasped as the air was forced out of her lungs, but she remained conscious and seemed to suffer no significant lasting injuries.

In absence of Hayate's orders, Signum commanded, "Mondial! If you saw what just hit Daidoji, focus on it with your M2D!"

"Yes, Ma'am!" The center screen quickly changed as Erio attempted to catch the blur, but it did not appear to want to be caught on screen.

**Don't touch them.**

Hayate froze as the voice resonated within her mind.

**Unless you can save them.**

Hayate took a step towards the front of the deck. Towards the screens.

"Mistress Hayate?"

**They've been hurt enough because of me. Don't hurt them more, I beg you.**

Hayate had placed a hand on the screen before she snapped out of her trance. She suddenly knew what had to be done. "Daidoji, Mondial, retreat and press your backs to the farthest wall from the glass coffins. Do not appear hostile!"

"Yes, Ma'am!"

_'If you're hurt, I want to help. If I can help, please let me try. But I don't know if your friends can be saved.'_

Hayate prayed that her feelings could be conveyed across the physical and mental distance.

**Somewhere in the Universe is the answer that I seek. Have you brought that answer to me? Can you save them?**

_'I don't know. I don't know enough to even tell you that much. But please, show yourself to us. Who are you?'_

The blur formed into an apparition. Her long silver hair fell past her waist, her blood red eyes staring straight at the screen. A long gray cloak covered the rest of her body.

Hayate faltered.

**I will do anything, if you can save them.**

Rein was the first one to finally say what everyone present was thinking. "She looks just like... me. No, the first Reinforce..."

"But she's not." Hayate's voice steeled as her words gave way to conviction that those words were true. "That's impossible. But there must be an explanation for all this. Daidoji, attempt to speak with the lifeform. See if it will allow us to peacefully bring it and the four others back to the Claudia."

**Must they be moved?**

_'We can't help you from so far away. There are better resources on our ship. Come peacefully, please. We mean you no harm.'_

**... I understand.**

The lifeform stepped aside, as if permitting access to the glass coffins.

Tomoyo frowned and took a cautious step forward. The lifeform did nothing to stop her. "Commander, should we proceed?"

Hayate nodded. "Form a transfer barrier around the coffins, the lifeform, and you two. Connect them to the Cruzar N200 and return to the Claudia."

All eyes watched as the lifeform slowly walked towards the coffins. She stood in front of the coffins, as if waiting for Tomoyo to do something.

Tomoyo hesitantly verified, "You can understand what we're saying... don't you."

The lifeform nodded.

Taking a breath, Tomoyo enlisted the help of her device, Opula, to erect the transfer barrier.

Erio kept up his guard beside her, watching in case the lifeform tried anything.

She didn't. Her eyes never left Hayate's, despite the screen and the distance that separated them.

Within ten minutes, Tomoyo and Erio were on their way back with the silent lifeform and the corpses.

Hayate exhaled softly. Her shoulders sagged.

_'Thank you for not resisting.'_

**Thank you for caring. No other ship has answered my S.O.S. until now.**

As everyone aboard the Claudia started to relax, Signum regarded her Mistress. "Do not be fooled, Mistress Hayate."

_'How long have you been waiting?'_

Hayate smiled calmly as she turned to Signum, not quite acknowledging her words. "Isn't it a curious thing, that we should come upon this when only you and Rein are with me?"

Signum neither smiled nor frowned at this.

**Too long. I have been traveling for too long. Waiting for too long. To keep them waiting is a greater tragedy however.**

Hayate tried to laugh it off, but gave up. "Call me if anything else happens. I'll be waiting at the dock."

"Hayate-"

Hayate shook her head. "I'll be fine, Signum. Stay here and keep an eye on things."

"... Yes, Hayate."

With one final glance at the screens, Hayate left the room.

_'Why can no one else hear you? Your S.O.S. appeared on our radar, but am I the only one that understands you?'_

"Hayate-chan!"

Hayate looked up to see that Nanoha was in front of her. She smiled. She could command Signum to leave her be, but not Nanoha. As if Nanoha would do such a thing. "Nanoha..."

Nanoha walked alongside her, getting right to the point. "Do you think they're copies? Or clones?"

Hayate knew she was thinking of Fate without her saying so directly. "I have no idea. I honestly don't."

**I can sense my power in you. Do you possess my book?**

"Hayate-chan? Hayate-chan, are you all right?"

Realizing she had stopped walking, Hayate shook it off and kept going. "Sorry, I spaced out for a second."

"What are your thoughts on this?"

_'Is that why only I can hear you? Because we share a power? Do you know the Tome of the Night Sky?'_

"Does it matter what I think?" Hayate smiled. "We'll learn the truth soon enough."

**I created the book that you possess. I have been seeing through the eyes of the one that most resembles me. Waiting until it found what I seek.**

"The lifeform may understand us, but it doesn't seem willing to speak. Learning much of anything willingly may be difficult."

Hayate teased nonchalantly, "Being 'difficult' never stopped you before."

_'Rein doesn't seem to have memories of you. Does she know you are searching for something? Does she know you at all?'_

"Maybe," Nanoha responded without missing a beat, "but I think this will effect you more than me."

"Maybe." Hayate said nothing more as they reached the dock. She opened the door to the observation deck and leaned against the glass panel. Watching. Waiting.

**You recreated her. Freed her from the burden of the memories of the previous possessors of my book. It comes as no surprise that she forgot me as well.**

"It brings back memories though, doesn't it?" Nanoha watched Hayate stare at the empty dock. "It's like seeing a ghost of the past. I wonder if Rein-chan will ever get to be adult size. What do you think, Rein-chan?"

Rein's voice brought Hayate back to attention again. Her little arms were folded in front of her as she said, "Rein can be any size she wants! I'm only this size because it's easier."

Nanoha laughed. "Like Zafira and Arf's puppy forms, huh? I see."

Hayate said quietly, "I like Rein-chan just the way she is, however she chooses to be."

_'Why did you create the Book? Did you create Signum and the others as well?'_

"Hayate!" Rein hugged Hayate as best she could considering her size.

Over the intercom, it was announced, "Cruzar N200 coming in for landing."

"Ah, they're here!" Nanoha watched from the window as the gates opened and the cruiser slid in without event.

Tomoyo appeared on Hayate's M2D. "Hayate-chan. What now? I examined the glass coffins a little more on the way here. There's no hope in saving them. The glass coffin is magically sealed to prevent decomposing. It's not the same as a hibernation chamber."

"Have the four glass coffins placed in one of the spare rooms. What about the lifeform?" Hayate frowned.

_'What is your name?'_

**I no longer remember. I have been waiting for so long.**

_'Waiting for what?'_

**For my book to return with the resources, the power I need to save them.**

Tomoyo responded, "It's... odd. She's alive... and yet... she isn't."

"A ghost?"

**I am not a ghost. And they are not dead.**

_'Can you hear what I speak aloud?'_

**I am connected with your mind. What your mind forms, I perceive.**

"No... not quite a ghost... we're exiting the dock. Where are you?"

"I'm waiting for you at the observation deck."

"All right. Then you can see for yourself."

The connection with Tomoyo ended and Hayate was again silent. Before long, the door between the connection tunnel opened, and Hayate was face-to-face with the owner of the voice inside her head.

The lifeform regarded her, her pale lips curving into something of a smile.

_'Why are you smiling?'_'

Remembering that she should speak aloud now, Hayate repeated, "Why are you smiling?"

**Seeing your face... I remembered the face of my love that I left back home.**

Hayate blushed a deep red.

The other occupants of the room did not let this go unnoticed.

Tomoyo looked between the lifeform and Hayate, the idea occurring to her before either Nanoha or Erio could say anything.

"Hayate... is she _saying _something to you? Do you understand something about her that we don't?"

Hayate looked at Tomoyo... and wondered why a chill went through her... as if she had just betrayed the trust of her best friend.

**Your name is Hayate? Mine... I'm remembering... my love used to call me 'Omeda'. Omeda... Perhaps... Andromeda.**

"Andromeda..." Hayate's hand flew to her mouth as a foreign memory unlocked in her mind. The feeling of cold lips touching hers as she slipped between the dreaming and waking world. "Omeda..."

"She is!" Nanoha quickly asked, "Hayate-chan! What is she saying?"

Hayate turned and fled from the room. She couldn't face that foreign being any longer.

Omeda became a blur once again.

_'No! Don't force me to be who _you _want me to be!'_ To Hayate, the blaring of the ship alarm was muffled like a scream beneath a pillow. A tear fell as she was forced to see another memory.

Someone that resembled her was dying. Dying a slow, painful death in a bed. She could feel the pain of both that person and the person looking after her. The person whose memory she was witnessing.

She didn't want to witness it. It was a private moment. She didn't want to feel their pain. It wasn't hers to feel.

**It is not who I want you to be. It's who you **_**are**_**.**

_'It's not! I don't even-'_

It all happened in a flash. One instant, Hayate was pinned to the wall, two arms trapping her in a fixed position. There were cold lips at her ear, whispering... nothing. A breath.

**Hayate...**

The next instant, the lifeform was a blur again, and Signum appeared in the forcefully vacated space. But rather than trap Hayate, she only sought to protect her. Her eyes were on the lifeform as she growled, "Touch my Mistress again and your life is mine."

The lifeform slowly picked itself off the ground as they became surrounded. Surrounded by the people that Hayate had enlisted for just such an "unforeseen circumstance."

Finally, the lifeform spoke for all to hear. It was something of a snake's hissing mixed in with Mid-Childan and yet with an echoing effect as well, like an intelligent device. "Signum Levare Mashriq. Stand _down_."

Hayate stared in disbelief as Signum obviously struggled but was unable to so much as lift a finger let alone her unsheathed sword.

_'What did you do?!'_

**To own the name is to own the soul. To have named a soul is to have control of that soul. Signum can't not disobey me.**

The lifeform reached out towards Hayate, her eyes gentle. "Now come to me. Hayate..."

A/N: Okay, so no real explanations needed for the specifics of this chapter as I didn't really get a chance to use what I learned but... The way I see it, when the series says that TSAB is intergalactic (at least, I believe it said that), it refers to the entirety of the Milky Way as well as the satellite dwarf galaxies that orbit the Milky Way. Multiple galaxies makes "intergalactic" a feasible notion. The "new fuel system" would allow for travel to the next closest galaxy, Andromeda. I believe Mid-Childa is very close to Earth, perhaps revolving around Alpha Centauri (A or B or maybe both), but they are both within the galaxy known as the Milky Way. Hayate's mission is thus to explore the closest star system on the outer fringes of Andromeda and report back. On the Claudia is resources to pinpoint magical signals within 1000 parsecs and send out radiowaves to map out planetoid forms within a smaller range of space. Ideally, she would also have to find a fuel source (perhaps it's solar powered?) or else she wouldn't have enough to return with even if she could land on such a faraway land. (:O Conspiracy unfolds?!)

Regarding distances, realizing that Andromeda is like 1.3 million parsecs away (yay, I learned about parsecs!), I upped the speed to 500 parsecs per hour (500 pc/hr) for Claudia and a range of 0-1000 lightdays/min (or 0 to 3 pc/min) for the Cruzar N200. I probably discounted most of my calculations in the last chapter by doing that, but the goal of this fic is to synthesize what I learned, which has higher priority than you understanding my A/Ns.

In an economic sense, the famous "three basic questions" were answered in this chapter (or alluded heavily to). What is produced or what is desired? (A way to resurrect Omeda's 4 friends) How is "the product" produced? (Omeda created the Tome and the Wolkenritter to collect data across the universe for "the answer") Who gets what is produced? (Durr... Omeda? Her 4 friends?) Oh! And absolute and comparative advantage! Omeda had the absolute advantage (over the Wolkenritter) and had enough magic and strength to probably comb the Universe herself for "the product" and she probably tried to do this in the beginning, but the Tome and Wolkies have the comparative advantage of mobility and more-or-less eternal life. Their endurance exceeds hers, and killing them all would be harder than killing her when she's by herself. Thus, Omeda came to specialize in watching over the bodies of her 4 friends, possibly controlling where the Tome would reappear each time, leaving her creations to specialize in the "footwork" so to speak. :D Economics is awesome and all encompassing.

The basic fundamental of calculus is a bit hard to plug into this... Umm... if the dialogue of Hayate near the end is confusing, separate them into their two separate conversations. Read only the **bold **parts and the '_italics_' parts first and then ignore them in the second read. That'd be something like separating complex integrals or sigma notations so that you can evaluate both sides and then add/subtract the end results.

If you found the mental and literal dialogues for Hayate confusing, note that part of that was intentional, to show how Hayate was more or less stoic as she kept the two conversations separate. Also, perhaps the "confusing" factor suggests that Hayate was just as scrambled in her head, trying to make sense of this new development. Poor Hayate. I keep stressing her out. Oh well, better than injuring or killing her... Stress is healable. Ah, but this taps into my theatre notes, in which one of the questions an observer should ask themselves when analyzing a play is, "What's confusing about this? Is it intentional? How is it confusing?"

Also, this chapter is more for plot development, if you can even begin to imagine where I'm trying to lead this so called plot. As explanation for the title, Aristotle's Mimesis refers to a definition of art (or theatre, I forget which) translating to "a copy of life". Thus, the inspiration for this chapter- though now the question is, which is the chicken, which is the egg? As to my reasoning for bringing in lookalikes of Reinforce and the Wolkenritter (I didn't say who was in the coffins, but you probably guessed)... well... I always wondered... How _does_ one come up with the idea of using a dog-man, a loli-girl, a pink-haired samurai, and a blonde healer as a fighting force? And where did Reinforce-tachi get their character designs from? Well, this is just a fic, remember, so allow me to speculate. n.n "Changing perspectives about how you see society (or the Wolkies)" was the most basic of results out of the realism movement (also covered in theatre).

Let's see, got down Astronomy, economics, calculus, theatre... again, I repeat, I hesitate to really use my mental illnesses class in this. Unless you want to consider Omeda's voice in Hayate's head and the "auditory hallucinations" it may translate to as symptoms of Hayate's mental illness at its onset. But MSLN people hear voices in their heads all the time. Though perceiving memories of other people... that's debatable.

Now then, I hope you found it in your heart to enjoy this piece.

Peace out, til next time.

P.S. I seem to be cursed in introducing characters that _could _be romantically affiliated but have some flaw that prevents them from being worthy of approval, don't I? sighs And if you say I'm a shippy tease... well, no comment. n.n Just a heads up tho. "Omeda" may try to capture Hayate's heart. And there shall be fluffy/friendly/suggestive scenes between Hayate and... well... n.n lotsa people. Who will Hayate choose? I wonder... Though, come to think of it, the purpose of writing a "what if" fic was to hook up Tomoyo/Hayate so... hmm... we'll see. Tomoyo may or may not get thwarted yet again. n.n

P.P.S. Updating the summary to incorporate what is learned with each chapter. I thus apologize for any potential spoilers, tho anything that happens in the first five chapters should be free game as it sets up the story.

Up next? Hmm... Maybe I'll insert some Tomate...


	4. Inexpensive Dialogue Scenes

The Magical What If

**Shard Card 2: Hayate's Story  
**

A/N: What to write now... An additional note to what I wrote in my last end A/N... if Andromeda is 1.3 million parsecs away and they're going 500 pc/hr, they'll arrive (assuming they make minimal stops) in 2600 hours or 108 days or about 3 and a half months. 3 and a half months worth of fuel going at full speed... sigh And to think we complain about /our/ gas prices...

**Disclaimer: I own nothing that isn't mine to own. Rawr!**

Ch. 4- Inexpensive Dialogue Scenes

It had been Tomoyo who had acted first. With a speed unparalleled by any from the school of healers, she cast a binding spell on Omeda before switching Opula to its Shot form. Had Omeda resisted, the larger-than-life sized hypodermic needle might have gone clean through her arm. As it was, the magical needle only pierced enough to release a tranquilizer into her body.

By all rights, the differences in Omeda's biochemical structure should have made the Midchildan chemicals useless, but on the contrary- they were made that much more effective because her immune system had no way of defending itself against the foreign substance.

In the same breath that Signum relaxed from her forced muscle locking, Hayate rushed past her and caught Omeda in her arms. The Commander's thoughts swam with conflicting emotions. She didn't want to see the memories Omeda made her see, but neither did she admit to having no inexplicable connection to the unknown woman. A connection that went beyond the surface of simply who she looked at. Hayate jerked her eyes away from Omeda's face to look at Tomoyo's. But before she could demand to know what had been done to her, she knew. She realized she already knew. And she knew Omeda would be all right.

Nanoha placed a hand on her shoulder, her lips set into something of a grimace. "Hayate... I know you mean well... but you know the rules. Hostile, unregistered beings have to-"

Hayate stood up, letting others take hold of the now unconscious women she had been holding against her chest like a mother caring for her baby. "I... I know. Sorry for raising a fuss."

"It's not your fault." Nanoha smiled just for her before ordering that the woman be taken to the POW medical rooms with level 5 security clearance. "Tomoyo, would you head the medical staff to assess our... guest's condition?"

"Of course."

Hayate moved to follow Tomoyo, but Signum's voice stopped her. "Mistress Hayate."

As the others relaxed their guard and went back to their stations, some chatting quietly with their companions, Hayate turned to face her own two companions. She smiled, not so much as attempting to hide her fatigue.

Nanoha murmured, tugging on Hayate's elbow, "Come on, this is no place to talk. And I think some issues require some discussion now, wouldn't you say, Hayate?"

Hayate nodded as the trio walked slowly down the hall to Hayate's quarters. After a long moment of silence, Hayate asked, "Signum... are you all right?"

Signum nodded back. "It was only meant to be temporary. I feel no discomfort. But having such a power over another is dangerous."

Hayate smiled as she opened her door, letting the others in before her. "Actually, I have reason to believe that you are the only one here that she has such a power over, Signum."

Nanoha joined Signum in frowning at this news. Seats were taken before Nanoha prompted, "And what 'reason' is this, Hayate? Fill us in."

Hayate took a deep breath and related everything that she had experienced and learned since they had made contact with the ship. She finished, "... Signum is the only one she may have unpredictably absolute control over because if what she says is accurate, she- Andromeda, created the Tome and the Wolkenritter."

Nanoha sighed. "Looks must really be deceiving then, if she's even older than the Tome. It makes some level of sense, I suppose. I mean, the Tome had to have been created by somebody, for some purpose, eons ago before it started passing hands. And it would make sense that that creator would retain control over its creations in case anything ever went wrong. But..." Nanoha frowned. "Is it really possible that even if that creator only amounted to one person, for that creator to still be living?"

Hayate shook her head as she held her hands up in hopeless defeat. "Your guess is as good as mine. Her body is... is colder than a human's, but she still has a body, and can communicate with us, and can slip unconscious same as any other living being with a brain. If you consider that the creator of the Tome must have had an incredible amount of magical power to start with to create something with such a complex mind of its own, it may not be so unreasonable that magic was able to extend the creator's life to impossible levels."

There was silence as this sunk in without anywhere else to go.

Finally, Signum asked, "Where do we go from here?"

Hayate bit her lip, hesitating, but ultimately decided to make an attempt. "Her home planet, or at the very least, her home star system, may very well be our desired destination. If that star system was able to produce a magic user like her, it does not seem unreasonable that it contains other magical users the likes of which my supervisors want us to investigate."

"So you want us to house her while she leads us to the 'gold mine' so to speak?" Nanoha frowned. "We still have several weeks ahead of us. She seems to have taken a particular... liking to you, Hayate. Are you sure you can handle having her aboard for that long?"

Feeling that the air was growing too serious, Hayate laughed and winked, "I haven't lived as long as I have without learning a few tricks to keeping admirers at bay. You don't have to worry about that. I'll handle it in my own way."

Signum was not as confident. "Mistress Hayate... If it should come to pass that this... this 'Andromeda' should attack you again..."

"I don't think it was her intention to hurt me, Signum." Hayate smiled patiently. "But just imagine. All these years, suspended in space, waiting for her creations to return to her with the fruits of their labor... I think she may have simply come off a bit strong after spending so long without... human companionship. I'm willing to forgive her for what just happened. No one was hurt, were they?"

"No..." Nanoha leaned back and finally laughed as well, as if being serious for too long simply didn't sit well with her. "Nyahaha... Well, I suppose if Hayate-chan is willing to befriend her, I won't oppose it. What about you, Signum?"

Still grim, Signum only answered, "I will not oppose my Mistress' wishes. However, I would like to exercise caution when dealing with this... magic user. We do not know all that she is capable of, what parts of herself she cannot control, and as such, how she may be a danger to herself as well as us."

Hayate nodded. "Hopefully, we won't have to learn about all that 'the hard way.' For now, at least until her test results come in, shall we consider this matter closed?"

"Agreed." Signum and Nanoha chimed as one.

Hayate giggled. "Then you two should contact your loved ones and let them hear your voices again." Although Hayate winked conspiratorially, a seasoned interpreter of Hayate's bravado would have been able to translate the underlying message: _Please, I need some time to be alone._ Nanoha and Signum were very much the seasoned warriors.

Nanoha stood up. "Yes, now might be the best time to do it- before anything else happens."

Signum's gruffly got to her feet as well. "I'll see to it that the coffins were transported... safely."

Hayate smiled, seeing through the thinly veiled intentions. "I'm sure Shamal would be amused."

"Vita, perhaps, not so much." Signum smiled briefly. "Her love for our Mistress likely clouds her ability to reason that someone created us before we ever met you."

"Group hug!" Taking matters into her own hands, she wrapped her arms around two of her closest friends and whispered, "Thank you both for putting up with me and my whims."

Nanoha laughed, returning the hug. "What are friends for? We'll always cover for you, Hayate."

Signum nodded in agreement as they parted. A few minutes later, Hayate was left alone with her thoughts.

Well, almost alone. A certain blue-silver-haired intelligent device floated around to face Hayate. "Hayate, are you okay?"

Hayate smiled. "I'm fine, Rein-chan. Thanks for asking."

"Are you going to call anyone?"

"Who would I call? I trust Nanoha and Signum to report to my closest..."

"Reina-sama?"

"Ah... oh... right... Reina-chan. How could I forget?" Hayate laughed, looking more embarrassed than she likely felt. "Yes, let's call her, shall we? Do we get reception here?"

"Rein gets reception anywhere there's Midchildan computers!" Rein puffed up with pride before a screen appeared in front of Hayate. As the transmission went through, Rein plopped down on Hayate's shoulder to get a good view.

"Hayate! Oh my god, _Hayate_!"

Hayate laughed as Reina tried in vain to hug the holographic screen. "Are you doing well?"

"Well? Yeah, I am now, since I've gotten to see your beautiful face again."

Only after months of hearing such openly profuse compliments did Hayate manage to restrain her reaction to a sheepish smile. "You look busy."

Reina made a show of looking around her at all the dishes piled up around the sink. "Not really. I spilled some coffee on a customer when someone behind me copped a feel and I got demoted to dishwashing for a while. It's all right. I'm a seasoned dishwasher, so it goes by fast." Resuming her dishwashing, Reina asked, "So what's up? How far away are you already? I can't believe it's already been two weeks since you left; I regret not being able to see you off more and more with each passing day."

"So you told me yesterday." Hayate laughed and let Rein inform her of their current coordinates. "We rescued someone who had been stranded in space and they're with the medical unit now. She's... She's a bundle."

Reina laughed, nodding half to herself and half to Hayate. "I see, I see. Is she attractive? Should I be jealous?"

"That depends," Hayate returned with a grin. "Are there any /reasons/ I should be jealous coming onto you back home? Did you know that person who copped a feel?"

"Mm... It was... accidental, really." Reina giggled, remembering the incident as if it had been a grade schooler confessing to her. "I believe you know Yuuno, don't you?"

Hayate blinked in surprise. "Yuuno-kun was the one?" She groaned for Yuuno's sake and then laughed as she thought about how comical it must have been. "Was Arf with him?"

"That red-head, right? Yeah, she was. Apparently, Yuuno-kun had been trying to get my attention, and when Arf pushed him to 'be more assertive' he fell over and... well, that's just what happened. He was apologizing all over the place afterward, even when the customer I'd spilled coffee on got so mad. When Yuuno and Arf finally left, I heard Arf saying how she was going to give Yuuno a lesson in drawing a line between assertive and inappropriate when they got home. It was so cute, you should have been there. But I kinda worried about Yuuno."

"Aww, poor Yuuno. Too much love for his own good." Hayate giggled, drawing her legs up to her chest as she changed subjects. "I miss you, Reina-chan."

Reina paused in her dishwashing and smiled. "Liar," she called affectionately. "You're probably livin' it up out there in space right now. With your mystery girl you picked up today and dealing with so many other halves of couples you got going on there..." A pause and then Reina flippantly, but still with the same loving tone as always, finished, "But I miss you too, of course."

A moment of peaceful silence drifted between them. Hayate closed her eyes briefly, and when she opened them again, she whispered, "Thanks, Reina-chan. I really needed that."

"Needed what?"

"To talk to you. To listen to you. To help myself unwind."

Reina laughed. "I'll always be here for you, Hayate. And I'll keep our bed warm until you come back safe and sound."

At this, Hayate finally flushed and looked away, scratching her cheek as Reina laughed more. "Mou... Don't say that. I'll be thinking these thoughts about you and then with you not here I might go and do something I shouldn't."

"I trust your judgment, Hayate." A shout came from Reina's end of the line and she looked off screen before saying hurriedly, "Ooh, my boss doesn't like me getting distracted on the job. Love you lots, baby. Kiss-kiss."

Hayate smiled, her declaration a whisper on her lips as Reina disconnected. "I love... you too..."

With a deep sigh Hayate fell backwards on her bed and closed her eyes. "Rein?"

"Yes, Hayate?"

"Wake me up in an hour, will you?"

"You're going to sleep?"

"Mm."

"Okay. An hour then. Or if someone calls for you."

"Naturally."

--

Hayate awoke to the feeling of gentle fingers gliding across her cheek. As her eyes blinked away the sleep, the hand pulled away. Adjusting to the light, Hayate called, "T-Tomoyo?"

"Sorry, did I wake you?" Tomoyo leaned back to give Hayate room to sit up.

"No, it's all right. Rein, what time...?"

"You had two minutes left." Rein floated around happily.

Hayate smiled and shook off the last bit of sleep. Running her fingers through her hair, she turned to Tomoyo. "Ah, no matter then. Did you come to talk to me or do you just enjoy seeing me sleep?"

"Both." Tomoyo guiltily, yet shamelessly, revealed her hidden camera and played back Hayate's relaxed, sleeping expression. "I missed seeing you sleep. I didn't realize that until Rein let me in and I saw you."

Hayate laughed and stood up to wake her body up more before sitting back down on the bed. "I miss our sleepovers too. When was the last one we had...? Before Nanoha-chan and Fate-chan were married and I met Reina-chan..."

"I didn't mean that." Tomoyo's smile was tender as she openly stroked Hayate's cheek. "You've been putting your work ahead of your health these past few years. Like you were trying to run away from something. As your personal doctor... I worry for you."

Hayate froze at the suggestion that she was running from something and laughed, taking Tomoyo's hand and holding it on her lap. "It's lonely at the top."

"But you're not 'at the top' yet." Tomoyo's gaze never wavered. "You still have a lot of people that care about you. Don't push past your limit, believing that you have something to prove."

Hayate was the first to look away. Studying intricately random squiggles on the tile floor, she asked, "Why did you come here? How is Omeda?"

Tomoyo didn't answer for a long moment. "She's fine. I was surprised when she talked to me mentally even though she was unconscious. She was very compliant and patient, explaining the schematics at what she had done to herself to preserve her life. She's been hibernating, like a bear might in winter, feeding off of her own magic. Centuries of meditation and living through her creations."

"So she _is_ a living being? Fully functional?"

"Well, what she did wasn't without repercussions. It may take a few days, or a couple weeks, before she adjusts to human food again. But she says if we are willing to feed her, she is willing to accept it, as well as be as easy to work with as possible."

Hayate looked up when she realized Tomoyo was playing with her fingers to get her to be more responsive. She smiled apologetically. "Sorry, I guess I'm still sleepy."

"Then sleep. I'll watch over you."

Hayate laughed and shook her head. "I can't do that. What kind of commander would I be if I was always sleeping?"

"Your co-commanders- Nanoha-san and Signum-san, can handle things on their own if you need rest, and I say you do."

"I won't deny their abilities," Hayate nodded, but stood up anyway, letting go of Tomoyo's hand in the process. "But this is my ship, my mission. Even if they are here to help, I have to be ready to take the brunt of it. Did you check Omeda for illnesses? Things that she might be immune to but we aren't?"

"Yes, I sterilized her while we were on the Cruzar N200 and did a thorough follow-up in the medical wing just now. She's sleeping peacefully."

"I see..." Hayate laughed to herself. "I guess I can't question her then. Unless I want her to read my mind."

Tomoyo frowned. "Does it bother you, Hayate-chan? When she does that?"

"It didn't bother you? That a complete stranger has access to your mind? Even on Mid-Childa, it only works when the minds of both parties are receptive."

"She didn't probe or ask a lot of questions... as I said, she was very compliant. Perhaps she is different with you. If so, you should watch yourself when you are within range of her."

"Watch myself? What should I be watching for?"

"Whatever it is you don't want her to see in your mind."

Hayate stared at her for a long moment before turning away. She headed for the door.

"Where are you going?"

"I'll make my rounds around the Claudia, make sure everything is working as it should. Then I suppose I'll wait for Omeda to wake up. I want to find out where exactly she lives, and what she can tell us about her home planet, how advanced it really is or if she's an anomaly. I hope to make her home our destination, as we can return her there while also possibly having leeway to make some sort of treaty with the people there."

"For fuel sources?"

"And whatever resources that we may be able to acquire."

Tomoyo stood up and placed a hand on Hayate's shoulder. "Hayate... will you do me a favor?"

"What is it?"

"Somewhere in your plans for the rest of the day, will you remember to get something to eat in the mess hall? You can't command on an empty stomach."

"Watch me." Hayate paused and then smiled. "But I'll keep that in mind, thank you. Rein, you coming?"

"Yessss, Mistress Hayate!"

Tomoyo walked with her down the hallway before they went their separate ways. Due to some discrepencies and minor problems, three hours had passed before Hayate could sit down to eat, and even that was made into a business meal. Eventually, however, she found her way to the medical wing, secured her clearance, and walked in.

When she sat on the stood beside the bed where Omeda lay, Omeda opened her eyes.

**I remind you of someone. Who?**

Hayate smiled and teased aloud, "If you can tell that much, you can't answer your own question?"

**I can observe that much from the way you're looking at me. I invaded your privacy before, and I apologize for that. I'm more lucid now.**

"I see." Hayate's eyes roamed the curves of Omeda's face, the shade of her eyes.

**Will you tell me?**

"What? Oh." Hayate smiled. "The system... the human manifestation of the Tome. She takes after you quite a bit."

**Ah. You know, when I first created her, she was smaller than that one you have with you now.**

"She will grow too then, won't she?"

Rein looked between Hayate and Omeda.

**Only if she wants to. Only if she is forced to mature.**

Omeda's hand snaked out from underneath the sheets and paused before stroking Rein's hair.

Rein made her pleasure very apparent.

"Your expression reminds me of her as well."

**Her? The mature Tome?**

Hayate nodded. "You both ache of loneliness and an indelible sadness. It hurts to look at you, and yet I still want to."

Omeda gave a thin smile. **To show happiness is to waste energy. That is something my Signum always said, because the rest of us insisted on being so happy when we were together.**

Hayate laughed, despite the sadness that her words invoked. "My Signum is much the same. Although I've gotten her to smile more often these days." Suddenly feeling curiously gossipy, Hayate asked, "Did the Signum and Shamal you knew ever... get involved? You know, intimately?"

**No.** Omeda's smile widened. **But they were always much closer than anyone else. Set apart, without being considered elitest. Why?**

"Do you not see through their eyes?"

**Only during important moments, such as when they 'die' and when they are 'reborn' with new masters.**

"Then you knew I was their mistress before my vessel came close to yours?"

**I knew they were happy with their new mistress, but I did not **_**see**_**. To see requires more magical energy than I was sure I could afford to use.**

"Ah... that makes sense, I suppose. Tomoyo told me about how you were able to hibernate in space. How did you create the Tome with your ship in shambles?"

Omeda looked away. **My crew died before I ever left my home planet. I made the Tome on that planet, and left with my creations, as well as my cherished ones. Had we not run out of gas in the asteroid graveyard and been battered left and right, I may have put off releasing my creations to continue the search.**

"Continue? Then you were already searching for a way to bring them back to life before you left your planet?"

**Yes. But while hibernating, I've come to accept that there simply **_**is**_** no way to do so, and I've made my peace with it.**

"I see..." Hayate hesitated, realizing how hard it would be on Omeda to return. "Would you be willing to be escorted back to your home planet? To give them a proper burial?"

Omeda stared at her, at first in surprise, and then with some unreadable expression. **You do not want to go there.**

"Why not?"

**My home planet is overrun with natural disasters. If there are any people left living on that planet, they are scavengers.**

Hayate frowned. "How do you know things haven't calmed down since you left? Perhaps things have been rebuilt..."

**Our glory was too great to ever be remade with the same glory.**

Hayate persisted, "My mission is to look into magic users in the galaxy we have dubbed 'Andromeda'. Ideally, the star systems closest to us."

**If that is your wish, I shall be your guide. There are plenty of other planets other than my own that are closer and still magically active. I have traveled far.**

"You do not mind being our guide?"

**As I told your healer friend, I do not mind complying as long as you want me to comply. I've come a long way. Death would not be unwelcome to me now.**

"If that was so, why did you keep yourself alive for so long?"

**I wanted to make sure my cherished ones and my creations were truly in good hands. Now, I am certain of it.**

"I thank you for your vote of confidence."

Omeda shook her head. **I thank you still for hearing my call. It means more to me than you could ever imagine.**

Hayate smiled. "Rather than imagine, I have but a simple question left for you."

**Yes?**

"Will you be my friend?"

Omeda's smile was soft and genuine. **To my dying day, Hayate.**

--

A/N: Er... yeah... not much in the way of official stuffs. When they land on a planet, I may delve into planetary orbits and the idea of having a star at each of the foci of a planet's orbit. This chapter had lots of conversations that hopefully give you a better picture of how this story is a sequel of Shard Card, if you've read that first. So far it seems the only real discrepency is Sakura and Tomoyo's relationship. Otherwise, NanoFate did get married, that /is/ when Hayate met Reina, Yuuno and Arf are being all together-y... Freya has yet to make an appearance, but I'm not sure if she should considering she was supposedly "born" to protect Tomoyo from Hayate ruining her relationship with Sakura. Unless something happened in Tomate's past to create such a creature but meh. There's also that Freya was "reborn" as Tomoyo and Sakura's familiar, so that wouldn't work too well with this story... le sigh

Ah, my Magical "What If" story... Not getting much love in the review department tho, is it? Ah well. What will be, will be. Que sera, sera.

Edit: The Economic part may have come in as a matter of drop in demand on Omeda's part. Whereas before, she provided a demand for "magically awesome bring-people-back-to-life item", at this point, she seems to have resigned that because no matter how high her demand is, the universal store just isn't supplying (perhaps because the price for such an "item" is more than anyone can pay) so... yeah. And yes, my class did just go over supply and demand relationships.

There's also a minor part from the theatre department, relating to "epic theatre" in which one actor is used to play several roles with little placards to clue you in on what viewpoint they're speaking from. Tomoyo did a bit of this, as she was/is both Hayate's best friend and her personal doctor. Another part of Betrechan (sp?) theatre is that it attempts to show you that the "actors" are really just that, actors and that they're really just people playing roles. Hayate displays this a bit in that tho to the world she may either be Commander Yagami or the pampered ex-criminal or the strong and confident sekuhara master, but I hope to portray that even the most "ideal" of characters are human, both on and off "camera". Well, I say that, but this /is/ still a fic, so take it as you like. I will /not/ go so far as to do the miming we are fishing and her hands are in front of her as if she is holding a fishing rod cheap lameness that also came with Betrechan theatre, so meh. Taking bits and pieces.

Furthermore on the astronomy side, I realized/remembered Newton's 1st law of motion, you know, in a vaccuum, if there is no force acting on a moving object it will keep moving in a straight line. So I realized that it was kind of stupid for the Claudia to need to stop for "gas" so to speak, so long as they were moving in the direction that they wanted to. They may, however, want to stop somewhere to restock on food etc.

Meh, from mental illnesses class, I could have phrased it so that Omeda was so paranoid that her planet's gov was after her that the asteroids were really suicide bombers out to get her and her ship and she didn't eat because the food was poisoned by said bombers... but... meh. hugs Omeda

...Funny how I can make up inferences out of nowhere when I started by saying there wasn't really much to explain. :D Please review?


	5. Omake CYOA

A/N: Alright, again, the following is more for my benefit than yours, but you are welcome to benefit from it if you so choose.

Story so far:

Ch. 1- Hayate left on an indefinite-length mission to explore the next big galaxy over from the Milky Way, the Andromeda Galaxy. With her, she made Nanoha (instructor/strategist) and Signum (leader of Wolkies) as her second in command; Tomoyo (CCS one-person x-over) her residential healer and head of medical staff; Shari, in case anything went wrong technology wise, led the tech crew; Subaru and Erio for speed and mobility (i.e. group 1 meets opposition on the other side of town from group 2, these two could be sent as messengers if communication is down); and then Vivio and Syn because Hayate feels like sponsoring some raw talent she can hold for ransom so that she can at least come back to return these two to TSAB HQ. Bwahaha. Manipulation to the nth power.

As of Ch.1, the established pairings I can think of are: Nanoha/Fate (married), Signum/Shamal (promised), Hayate/Reina (OC dating/living together), Subaru/Teana (dating), Erio/Caro (dating), Vivio/Syn (pre-confession stages), Shari/Marie (undiscussed but not denied?). That leaves Tomoyo (AU ignoring of TomoSaku drama in SC1) and Vita the only ones mentioned that are still single. n.n;;; Yeahhh the problem with having a sequel of a happy ending is that I've already mass-paired everyone up... . So this story breaks all the couples apart n.n Not permanently of course, and they'll still have their vid convos, but meh, they need more growth as individuals. Plus, this story is centered on Hayate. :3

Ch. 2- A peaceful chapter involving implied gropage of Vivio/Syn a la Hayate, a convo btn Hayate and Nanoha, followed by the appearance of an SOS signal. In this chapter, I am aware that there are some discrepencies of speeds and landmarks (passing andromeda when they're headed to Andromeda?) so ignore all that. :3

As of Ch. 2, there may be hints of Hayate/Nanohamorethanfriends vibe

Ch. 3- Erio and Tomoyo are deployed to retrieve the sole survivor in a wreckage using the Cruzar N200 (a name made up btn the name of my flash drive co. and messing with "cruiser", plus a random number to sound cooler), and they find that the sole survivor is the splitting image of the first Reinforce (or perhaps I should say, Reinforce is the splitting image of /her/?) and that she is guarding 4 glass coffins of people who look exactly like the 4 Wolkie Knights. Hayate orders that the survivor and the coffins be taken back to the Claudia III (the main ship for this mission) and she has a convo with Nanoha while waiting. She then comes face to face with the survivor, things spiral out of control, and she ends up pinned by Andromeda/Omeda/the survivor and subsequently protected by Signum.

As of Ch. 3, there begins the desperate dance of secrecy and control btn Hayate and Omeda that may or may not grow into something more. There are also hints of Hayate/Signum, being as protective as Signum is. There are glimmers of Hayate/Tomoyo and Hayate/Nanoha, tho they may be seen as close friendship at best.

Ch. 4- (most recent) Another quiet chapter. After Omeda is taken to the medical wing sedated (to be tested formally by Tomoyo), Hayate discusses their game plan with Nanoha and Signum. They agree to put up with Omeda in exchange for using Omeda as their guide in the Andromeda galaxy. Then follows a vid-convo btn Hayate and Reina, who is like Hayate's breath of fresh air after the stress of her responsibilities. After a nap, Hayate talks with Tomoyo about Omeda, and then Hayate talks directly with Omeda.

As of Ch. 4, there is more concrete signs of Hayate/Reina, Hayate/Tomoyo potential, and Hayate/Omeda potential. Also, if you're of the inclination, NanohaHayateSignum 3some. If readers would like to voice which coupling they would prefer, I the author shall take these into consideration, as I'm open minded about it at the moment.

The above mentioned hinted pairings are, for the most parts, the relationships I will pursue, tho the "how" is still up in the air. So... Hayate/Reina, Hayate/Tomoyo, Hayate/Omeda, Hayate/Nanoha, Hayate/Signum, HayateNanohaSignum. XD Take your pick, but Hayate needs some lovin'.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything that isn't mine to own. I do hope to claim, however, the will to write, the ability to keep writing, and the general formation of this story. -bows-

Warnings: I think I forgot this in all the previous chapters, because I don't think there's anyone who frequents the MSLN fandom sections that isn't at least openminded to shoujo-ai lit/fics. If you couldn't tell from the above schpiel (or if you didn't read it), this is very much a supersaturated shoujoai story. Will there be sexual content? Not likely, as I don't pretend to write exhibitionism into the turn-ons for any of the canon characters. Hints, innuendos, and general references? Pfft, the ceiling of space is the limit (so, aka, infinity and beyond)

And now... we're ready to begin! But I digress, I like having my randomness, so I apologize in advance.

A/N: This chapter will be an Omake CYOA (Choose Your Own Adventure, 1 chapter, 6 choices) and if it's a hit, then I'll be having similar chapters every 5 or so chapters. A break from the storyline perhaps.

The success of this chapter relies on your ability to follow directions competently. You will be asked a question and then given three choices. If you pick A, then scroll to the title reading Omake A. If you pick B, scroll down to Omake B, etc. Note, this is only for this chapter and as the consequences of this chapter have no true bearing on the rest of the story, it really does not matter to me who you pick. It's fanservice-y sort of. I only ask that you leave a review telling me which one you ended up going with and what you thought of it. Thank ye...

Also note, this will be written in traditional CYOA novel form, meaning the perspectives will be in the form of someone telling "you" what happened and will likely be in present tense. i.e. "You feel a rush of euphoria as she touches your arm and you smile." Since there is only one constant in all of this. "You" will also be simultaneous (?) with "Hayate".

That said, I hope you enjoy. And if you don't... well... Go find a friend you think might enjoy it and switch places with them as readers. :D

**Ch. 5- Omake CYOA**

Hayate smiled as she surveyed the planet they were about to land on. The starting and stopping required to pick up Omeda had taken a chunk out of their fuel supply, but more importantly, after about six weeks out in space, the food supply was running low. This planet, jokingly dubbed Planet X for its criss-crossing asteroid belts, was the farthest colonized planet from Mid-Childa. After this, TSAB was nothing more than a four-letter alien acronym. They would be on their own after that point. Thankfully, Planet X was chock full of untapped and tapped resources, so while the Claudia had a mechanical tune-up, was refueled and restocked, its crew would be allowed free reign in the port city. Officially, they were supposed to mingle with the natives and make sure everyone was more or less happy on this side of the galaxy, but there would be plenty of time for fun as well. Hayate knew that everyone couldn't wait for the chance at fresh air, despite the fact that the cities were mere hubs of controlled oxygenated atmospheres. The rest of the planet, inbetween the cities, were uninhabitated by Midchildan descendents.

When it came time to disembark, Hayate called together her whole crew and took roll call. Affirming that before releasing everyone, everyone was able-bodied and accounted for, she let them file off the Claudia. In a matter of 10 minutes, the only ones left were the ones who always waited for her. Hayate looked between her friends and asked, "So what do you feel like doing now?"

Nanoha grinned and made a victory sign as she said, "I think I'm going to go find a secluded area and fly around a bit. I'd hate to think that I'd gotten rusty after all this time on the ship."

Hayate giggled. "I don't think you could ever get rusty at flying even if you actively tried, Nanoha-chan."

As Nanoha shrugged, Tomoyo said, "As for me, I have medical supply shopping to do. I also want to talk to the people here to see what diseases are common in this area and if there are cures for them on sale."

"Always so work-oriented," Hayate shook her head and then laughed. "Bring us back good news.

Tomoyo nodded, cueing Signum to say, "I... promised Shamal I would take pictures of... the wildlife here. So... I'll be walking around doing that."

Hayate smiled, saying nothing as she noted the pink tinge to Signum's cheeks. Not that she saw anything wrong with the strong warrior taking pictures of wildlife.

There was one silent figure still present and Hayate turned to her. "What about you, Omeda? Do you want to go around for a bit?"

Omeda shook her head. She held up the bracelet hanging off of her wrist. Tomoyo explained for her, "She's tied to the Claudia, Hayate-chan. She's not /allowed/ to go walking around like that."

"Oh... right."

There was silence and then Nanoha asked, "What are you going to do, Hayate-chan? Do you want to come with one of us?"

Hayate looked at the row of faces and realized she had to make a decision. Breathing out softly, she said...

**Question: What did Hayate say?**

Nanoha, Omeda, Reina, Signum, Tomoyo, NanoSignum

A. "Um... you know what? I think I'll stay here and keep Omeda company. Maybe we can map out what to expect from each planet before we get there even." (Go to Omake A)

B. "Taking pictures of the area sounds nice. In fact, that may be the best way to survey the status quo of this settlement. Signum, can I...?" (Go to Omake B)

C. "Nanoha-chan, I was just thinking that I could use some flying practice, too. Do you mind if I join you?" (go to Omake C)

D. "Signum, I bet you could get really good pictures if you went with Nanoha and got a bird's eye view of the good spots. Maybe we could all look around together?" (Go to Omake D)

E. "Actually, I should really brush up on my medical knowledge. Tomoyo-chan can..." (Go to Omake E)

F. "Ah, this is the only free time I may have for a while... and come to think of it, Reina-chan has the day off from work today. I think I'll just go back to my room and... give her a call." (Go to Omake F)

Note All of the above quotes are really excuses, and there is more that happens in that omake than is implied. However, the names used are accurate.

--

**Omake A. Hayate/Omeda**

"Um... you know what? I think I'll stay here and keep Omeda company. Maybe we can map out what to expect from each planet before we get there even."

The girls present give you funny looks, but don't question your decision. You /are/ the Commander after all. Signum comes forward and says, "If that is what you desire, then so be it. Call us if anything... happens."

You smile at her. "You worry too much. But thank you, I will."

Before long, your girl friends have left and only you, Omeda, and the maintenance crews are aboard the ship.

**You didn't have to stay behind.**

You look over at Omeda and can't help but smile. Her face has not changed in the slightest since you last looked at it. Only her eyes show any sign of life. Sometimes, when you wonder if she is really alive or not, you look up into her eyes and you know she is. Taking her hand, you start walking down the hall, away from the main foyer. Nobody needs to peek in on what you do during your free time. "No one else is here to overhear us, you know. You can speak out loud."

**Does it make a difference?**

Only then do you realize that she simply _prefers_ talking mind-to-mind. And you can sort of understand her, because there's something appealing about how... intimate it is.

If you were lovers, that is.

You sigh and shake your head. Turning to her, you ask, "What were you going to do, since everyone is gone?"

Her eyes are as resillient as ever, never even giving signs that she was thinking about her answer. She will take a long time to be as easy to read as your other friends. Friends... was that what you were? After a month together, were you really just friends?

**If you want to go over planets... I can do that.**

"What?" Just then, you remember your excuse to your friends and try to laugh it off. "Oh, that? It's really not that important. We did that the other day when I couldn't sleep... let's do something you want to do. Tell me. It can be anything."

She stops walking and looks at you. Not that she wasn't already looking at you, but now she's /really/ looking at you. Sizing you up. Deciding how much torture you can be put under before you crumble in her hands. You take an involuntary step back.

**Anything?**

"Um, within reason."

She looks down and you follow her eyes to your interlocked hands. She tugs your hand, almost like a child who wants to go somewhere but is too embarrassed to ask for it aloud. But of course, Omeda wasn't talking aloud at the moment anyway.

**Will you sit with me... with my friends... in the dark?**

You frown and look past Omeda's shoulder, realizing where your haphazard walking has led you to. The four glass coffins. They still hadn't been moved from the otherwise bare spare room. Furniture came with necessity. "Why in the dark?"

**The light... is blinding. I can't... think as well.**

You regard her carefully, noticing how there's this hopeful sort of plea in her eyes. She /wants/ to spend time alone with you. She is not afraid to admit that. You find yourself being drawn to her for that honesty. "All right."

"

When she smiles, a rare thing despite all your attempts since she was placed on house arrest, and you feel your insides start to melt at the sight. Shaking it off, knowing you're supposed to be already committed, you walk to the door and open it. It's already dark. You walk in first and she follows you.

You stand together just inside the doorway until it closes, cutting off any source of light. You feel a tug on your hand and she is leading you... leading you where? Soon, she stops and sits down on the floor, taking you with her. Your mental map of the layout of the sparse cubic room leads you to recognize that you are leaning against the wall, facing the coffins somewhere in the darkness.

You feel a pressure on your shoulder and she is leaning on you, letting you see her vulnerable side once it is too dark to see anything in great detail.

You wonder if you should bring up a subject to discuss, but she beats you to it.

"You would have gotten along well with my friends. I've talked to them about you and they agree with me. You're very similar to my last lover."

"Your last? What happened to the first?" It was better than nothing, better than pure darkness. Perhaps it would even help light up the mystery that was Omeda's long past.

"Nothing horrific, if that is your meaning." You say nothing to dispute that, so she continues. "We merely separated ways, time after time... none of them lasted. That last one... was the one that made me swear off such casual loving to the end of my days. The last one was all that mattered."

You remember the memories that Omeda made you see that first night. "She was... sickly, wasn't she."

"Like you were."

"I wasn't sick! It was just the-" You stop, realizing how accusatory it would be to tell a woman who is sad enough as it is that her creation- albeit a bastardization of her creation- paralyzed her body for much of her childhood. "I wasn't unhappy."

"Until you almost thought it was over."

You look over as the pressure on your shoulder lessens noticeably. Even if it is dark, you can still sense that she is looking at you. You wonder if she is able to see in the dark. It is in that moment that you realize a loophole in her words. "I thought you couldn't see through the eyes of the Wolkenritter."

"I can't. But if I touch 'Reinforce'," Your breath hitches as you feel her hand, cold but not unwelcome, against your collarbone. You can feel her pressing the cross-like emblem against your skin gently. "I can collect the knowledge that Reinforce gained."

"Even if I... she... she was 'reformatted'?"

"You cannot erase someone's memories, much less a magical tome's. You might seal it away, but every seal has its key."

You're not quite sure what to say to that. Her hand absently falls to your lap as her cheek rests once more on your shoulder. You ask, concerned for her wellbeing, "Are you tired?"

"Only a little, but being with you relaxes me. I feel as if I can... be at ease."

You feel that maternal instinct that you feel with the Wolkenritter get triggered again. Reaching up, you stroke her hair, and pause in surprise when you hear her purr. "Do you like that?" She only snuggles against you more in response, so you continue stroking her hair.

There's a peace of mind about this feeling of combined isolation and bonding that makes you smile. You don't know how much time has passed before you open your mouth again, but you realize that it makes no difference to you. "Tell me about your 'last lover'. What was her name? How did you meet?"

"Can I... show you?"

"Show me? Show me how? Another memory?"

"Her name was also 'Hayate', but pronounced in our tongue." She says your name, you can only imagine it is your name, but it is said with such love, such smoothness of vocal sounds... it takes you a moment before you realize that she is kissing you.

The feeling of her tongue, like and unlike that of Midchildans or Earthlings, reminds you distinctly of water and silk. There is an ethereal quality about it, and as such, even though her tongue is invading your mouth, even though you do not desire its presence there, you cannot push her away. Your hands move to do the pushing for you, but you can't bring yourself to go through with it.

She saves you from the effort, her lips separating from yours seamlessly. "That was how we first met."

You can barely put two words together in your mind let alone translate them into spoken words. "W-what?"

You can sense more than see her smile. Has a connection been born between the two of you? She caresses your face with the back of her hand, and you find yourself leaning into her touch. "The first time I met her, the first time I said her name on my lips, we kissed, just like that. Kissing is perhaps more guarded on our planet than the one you come from. It is an intimate ritual, because to kiss is to see into the other person's soul."

It is only then that you realize that _that _ was what the feeling of her tongue was, the feel of her soul. Her memories were a continuum, a river that is ever flowing. And now they flow through you. You can't understand all of it, but there is one thing you understand for certain. You crave more. You _want_ to kiss her again, to see what else is there.

Not because she makes your heart race when you know she is looking at you or because when she says your name- no, the name of her last lover- you can feel your cheeks grow warm. Not because you know she is leading you down a dark and winding path.

You are suddenly thankful that it is dark. You press forward. "Tell me more, please. Omeda."

The name that comes from your lips is foreign and sweet. You realize that it is accented in her language the same way she had just said your name.

Compelled by a force beyond and within yourself, you find her lips in the darkness and kiss her again.

She does not resist.

--

**Omake B: Hayate/Signum**

You stretch as you leave the confines of the Claudia, or to be precise, the Cruzar N200 that has taken you from the Claudia orbitting around the planet to the surface. You look around and feel with your heart. Finding that Signum has not wandered that far off, you grin and start in that direction.

You find her, camera already positioned, taking a shot of a beautiful tree indigenous to this planet. You call out to her and she looks up at you in surprise. "Mistress Hayate."

You smile at her surprise and walk up to her. "Come to think of it, taking pictures of the area sounds nice. In fact, that may be the best way to survey the status quo of this settlement. Signum, can I join you?"

"Of course, Hayate." She hesitates, as if not knowing what to do from there, and awkwardly goes back to taking pictures.

"Are you only going to take pictures of the wildlife?" Looking around, you realize that there is nothing around but trees. Where are the birds? The animals? Well, you reason, the spaceport is still fairly close to here; perhaps they are simply farther away.

"No," Signum lowers her camera again. She starts to walk towards you... and then turns. She raises her camera to fixate on a bird. A lone bird. Where is its flock? Its family? "She wasn't really specific, so I'm just taking pictures of everything. When I get to the city itself, I will take more pictures of the people."

"I see." And indeed, that is all you can do- stand and see what is around you. You decide to lean against a nearby tree's trunk and settle to watch Signum herself.

She is quick to catch on and she pointedly avoids looking at you, likely because there is a blush on her cheeks. You can see that much from your angle. "W-why are you looking at me like that?"

"I'm only looking." But you also smile, remembering memories. Back in the day, when you were young and innocent, before Reinforce was reborn, you would take advantage of your position as the Mistress of the Tome of the Night Sky. You would grope Signum while she slept. Looking back on it, she was likely awake the whole time every time and simply pretended she was asleep for your sake. She was always doing things like that, spoiling you because you were her mistress.

You're an adult now though, and your "innocence" has changed drastically. Signum is more to you than just your run of the mill second-in-command, leader of your Knights. You love so many people, but you can't help but acknowledge that out of the Wolkenritter, she occupies a special place in your heart reserved for the most special of special people. Your insides grow cold, however, realizing that you may love her more than you do Reina. But such a connection is inevitable, is it not? You have been through so much with Signum, with the Wolkenritter. Signum alone was strong enough and cared enough to carry you in her arms just so you could look up at the sky with her. She alone...

"Mistress Hayate?"

She alone was more accustomed to calling you "Mistress" than "Hayate-chan" or even simply "Hayate". The others had accepted that she considered them family, not unrelated mercenaries for hire. The others accepted that you loved them for who they were, not for what they could do for you. Signum tried, made the effort, but her knighthood was ingrained into her personality. It was then that you wonder how similar Signum of now took after her archetype, the one she was supposedly a copy of. But the thought washes away, because it does not really concern you. This Signum, your Signum, will be the only Signum ever to have a place in your heart.

You blink and come back to the world. Signum is in front of you, concern shining clearly in her eyes. "Are you all right, Mistress Hayate?"

You smile and nod. Reaching forward, you hug her, surprising yourself, but not more so than Signum. Her chest rises and falls as her arms come around to return the gesture. All is right with the world when you are with her. She will not let harm come upon your head. Even though you know you can protect yourself a good majority of the time, it pleases you that for the times that you cannot protect your back, her hands are there, ready to fend off whoever should dare to sneak up on you.

"Thank you, Signum."

She is not a mind-reader; she doesn't understand why you would say this. But she says nothing to that effect. A knight does not question her mistress, especially about trivial details. "Your will is my command."

You breathe in and for the nth time in the time you've spent with her, you find yourself intoxicated by her scent. It is neither flowery and fruity like some artificial scents nor dull and material driven as some commoners' scent. It is uniquely "Signum-scented" and you flush at the warmth it floods your heart with. She will always be there for you, even if her body is not.

You wipe away the tears threatening to fall and smile at her again once more. "What are you looking for? Maybe I can help point out things to take pictures of."

She regards you for a moment and then shakes her head. There is a ghost of a smile on her lips. She says nothing about how you changed the subject rather than explain yourself. "Anything that Shamal would not have seen on Mid-childa or Earth. We have traveled, but we do not remember. We do not care to remember anything that happened before Hayate became our mistress. But that is not to say that we would not be willing to appreciate the mysteries of other worlds."

You nod and take her free hand, and it is warm and callused in your own unstained hand. If she is surprised, she says nothing of it as you tug her towards both the heart of the woods and the city on the other side of it. "Let us go explore and appreciate what opportunities we are given then."

Let us go... together. Until the end of time.

--

**Omake C: Hayate/Nanoha**

You snap out of your daze and look around, wondering if you had been dreaming. You're outside on a grassy hillside with skyscrapers to your right and woods to your left. You find yourself alone, and can't help but feel a little saddened. Just then, a fierce breeze ruffles your civilian jacket and you look up into the sky instinctively.

A smile comes to your lips as you see the familiar white barrier jacket. The second time she speeds past you in the sky, you call out her name. The pink blur slows to a stop and then waves back. As she comes closer to hover over you, you voice your request.

"Nanoha-chan, I was just thinking that I could use some flying practice, too. Do you mind if I join you?"

"Nyahaha, it's a free sky, Hayate-chan." She extends a hand towards you, and you release your barrier jacket. You can feel the power, the power that you don't need at the moment, bubbling up to the surface, but you force it back. Force it into the wings on your back. As you take flight, you can't help but gasp at the breathtaking feeling of flying in the sky of a planet like and yet not your own. There is an air of prepackaged "just add wings" adventure and you soon join Nanoha in doing random loopy formations in the sky. No doubt soon, people will start to leave their comfy homes and see you and her, but you don't care. Here, the sky really is the limit. At the same time, you also know that it isn't the universal limit. The fact that you're here on this foreign planet at all is proof of that.

"Nanoha-chan," you call her name and she smiles at you as she would a friend. A very close friend with a lot of back history. You reach forward to take her hand, and she accepts the offer. The twirling continues until you are both sick in the stomach- which is a long time when you're with Nanoha.

You convince her to touch down and take a breather underneath a tree. She says she feels thirsty though, so we compromise, landing and walking into the nearby city to find something to drink. You wait on a bench for her to retrieve local beverages and look up at the cloudless sky. This planet truly is beautiful, despite the mass amounts of uninhabited areas that had yet to be terraformed and colonized. You hypothesize that although this planet is smaller than Earth, it is bigger than Mid-childa. And yet more than three-fourths of it is void of human colonization. A greedier superior might say that it was a waste of perfectly good land, but you are rational; you know that you would be risking more than gaining to have these people stake their livelihoods on exploring when they were perfectly happy as is.

A cold drink touches your cheek and you jerk away from it. Nanoha giggles at your reaction as she sits down beside you. You judge the green liquidy drink before accepting it and then inspecting it more. "What /is/ this?"

"Don't ask, just drink. Raising Heart looked it up on our databases and it's a perfectly safe, healthy drink. So drink up."

You sigh and take a sip, for who are you to deny the great Ace of Aces? To your relief, it tastes far better than it looks. You quickly drink more to quench your thirst.

When Nanoha sighs happily and leans back, you look over just in time to catch several strands of hair in your nose. You sneeze and they float back down. Nanoha laughs and you smile sheepishly as you study her hair. You think back to when you were children, and her hair was always in twin pigtails. You reach forward to touch it, see if it's really as soft as it looks, and it is. It really is. You begin to stroke it as if it were the fur of animal, and she makes a sound to show she likes it.

"Your hair is so nice, Nanoha-chan..."

She giggles and turns a little to face you. "You think so?"

You nod eagerly, studying it in more detail. "What shampoo do you use?"

"I..." Nanoha stops and when you look up at her face, she's gone red.

"What is it?"

"Y-your hand. Where is it?"

"My hand?" You look down and realize your free hand had braced itself on Nanoha's thigh. You squeeze the flesh beneath that hand affectionately and she lets out a sound somewhere between a moan and a squeak. "Does it bother you?"

"N-no... not really... but Fate-chan would... she would..."

You giggle and remove the offending hand, scooting even closer to sneak it around her waist. As you pull her closer, you whisper, "We wouldn't want to worry Fate-chan then. But this shampoo you use... not only does it work well but it smells great. What is it?"

The blush is still on her cheeks as she leans over and whispers in your ear.

Suddenly, you slide to the other side of the bench and keep your hands to yourself. Frankly, you feel rather queasy.

"Hayate?"

You don't dare even look at her, your cheeks are burning so badly right now.

"...You know I was just kidding, right?"

At that, you slowly look over, but you can't get that /image/ she's planted out of your head anymore. "That wasn't funny, Nanoha."

Nanoha giggled. "Sorry... It's actually a Midchildan brand Vivio bought for me for my last birthday. Remember?"

You don't say anything, and you don't move either.

"Oh come on, it wasn't that bad was it? I said I was sorry..."

You simply shake your head. You don't forgive her just yet, but you do scoot a little closer. Silly Nanoha...

--

**Omake D: Hayate/Signum/Nanoha**

You toss your empty bottle into a nearby disposal bin and turn just in time to see Signum exiting some random shop or another, camera still in hand. You look between her and Nanoha and smile. You must be some sort of masochist, but that doesn't stop you from calling out to her and suggesting, "Signum, I bet you could get really good pictures if you went with Nanoha and got a bird's eye view of the good spots. Maybe we could all look around together?"

She looks at you curiously, and then at Nanoha, nodding with understanding. Signum agrees, as does Nanoha. It isn't long before the three of you take to the skies again. As Nanoha points out some object out in the distance that only she with her ridiculously good/bad farsightedness can see, you lean back and watch the two interact. Back when Riot 6 was in full force, they didn't talk much to each other because if anything Signum was Fate's subordinate just as Vita was Nanoha's. You are happy to see that despite not talking often in the past, they seem to get along fairly well anyway.

That, or Nanoha was just babbling at a rock that could nod its head occassionally in response. You find the sudden urge to be childish again, since you know you'll have to return to your more formal role before long. Better to live it up while you still can.

"Nanoha, Signum!" You fly up close to them and kiss one cheek each before rushing off. 'Tag, you're it!"

You get a head start as they figure out what to make of your sudden impishness, and Nanoha is the first to recover from the blush that you've placed on their cheeks. She rushes after you and you find yourself flying as if your life depends on it. She has that devilish look in her eyes when you glance over your shoulder to see her chasing you.

Then Signum joins the fray and you know you will inevitably lose, but being tagged or tagging them again isn't such a daunting notion. They're your closest friends after all- and if they kiss back instead of tackling you to the ground... well, what harm could a little cheek kissing do?

That's what you think... until you find Signum in front of you, Nanoha behind you, and both hugging you at the same time. Your poor wings can't take the pressure and you dip a little in altitude. They hold you up, of course, long enough to each kiss a different cheek before releasing you. Their taunt becomes synchronized as they call out, "Tag, you're it, Hayate!"

And as you give chase- whichever one you catch matters not- you can't help but feel that this is the first time you've felt free since... since the day you met Reina. You make a promise to yourself that you'll call her as soon as you get back to the Claudia.

"The one who's still it in half an hour pays for dinner tonight!"

Until Nanoha shouts out that ultimatum, it doesn't occur to you that the sun is on its downward sloping already. You start to give chase in earnest. You choose Signum, because she's slower on any given day. You also happen to know that she blushes very cutely when she's embarrassed, which she surely is at the mere thought of being kissed by her mistress. The fact that she is still embarrassed over this despite all your years together makes you want to laugh aloud, but for her sake, you don't.

Just as you catch and release Signum with another kiss on the cheek, Nanoha calls out, "One minute left!"

Signum reaches forward and catches you before you can run off again. You're about to tell her 'no tag backs' but she pulls you close anyway. You turn your head slightly and are more than just a little surprised when you find warm lips covering your own. You smile for the instant that it lasted, because a small part of you had always wondered what Signum's lips would feel like.

Her whole face is hidden in the deepest red that you've seen yet and she immediately steps back and gets on her knees, still on mid air, and bows and begs profusely for forgiveness. By the time Nanoha joins you, you're hugging Signum and telling her that you didn't mind it at all. Eventually, you tease that if Signum is really sorry, she'll let you dock tonight's dinner out of her pay. Signum is so void of objection that you can't help but feel a tiny bit disappointed. Nevertheless, the three of you float back down to the surface in search of somewhere to eat.

You're sitting next to Signum in a 4-person restaurant booth and you wonder what you can do to comfort her. She still seems embarrassed by her slip-up... though mortified would be more accurate.

It is Nanoha who teases Signum first, saying, "Signum, you aren't embarrassed because you actually liked kissing Hayate over Shamal, are you?"

Signum blushes in guilty admission before she can even begin to stammer out an objection.

You giggle and catch Nanoha's look, winking in her direction before pressing Signum, "Oh, is that it? Now I feel bad for Shamal... but you know-"

"It-It-It wasn't like that! A-as a knight, I just f-feel ashamed that I-I..."

It is then that you realize how adorable Signum looks when she's this flustered, and even if it tortures her, you can't help but want to have a little more fun with it. You scoot closer to her and whisper in her ear, though you don't doubt that Nanoha can hear you, "But you know... I'm a very forgiving, /loving/ mistress... if that was what you wanted all along, you only had to /ask/..."

When Signum makes the mistake of turning towards you again in shock, you kiss her again, a little stronger than what she'd given you earlier. As Nanoha whistles in amused specatorship, you can feel the heat radiating off of Signum's cheeks.

Then, you're not sure Nanoha hears it, but you hear Signum let out the softest of whimpers when you release her. It is then, as look into Signum's eyes, that you realize just how appealing this actually is to you, and you know you have to stop. Even if you are her mistress and she will obey you unquestioningly, you cannot take advantage of that. You lean back with a soft smile.

"I'm going to head to the restroom." You stand and hold up a hand to stop them from following you. "Wait for the food, won't you? I'll be back in a bit."

As you leave the table, you refuse to acknowledge the rapid beating of your heart, or the glimmer of possessiveness when you hear Nanoha asking Signum, "Signum? Are you okay? Do you want to move to my side of the table?"

--

**Omake E: Hayate/Tomoyo**

"We should go see what there is to do entertainment wise around here. It'll be fun!"

You smile apologetically. "Actually, I should really brush up on my medical knowledge. Tomoyo-chan can help me in that respect."

Signum frowns. "We'll go with you. I think we're about done here anyway."

Nanoha nods in agreement, but you shake your head. "You two barely get a chance to hang out together. You should take advantage of this opportunity. I'll be fine, I promise."

They eventually agree to let you go, but not wholly happy with the matter. Regardless, you leave the restaurant you had dinner with them at and go in search of Tomoyo.

She is already on her way back when you catch up to her. "Tomoyo!"

She turns and waits when she hears you, smiling as you catch your breath. "Hayate-chan..."

You look and see she has several bags with her, but then you realize that the quantities that Tomoyo would have had to order would have to be shipped by the truckload to the ship. "Did you order everything? Have any trouble?"

Tomoyo smiles and shakes her head. "Everything went as planned. The Claudia will be fully loaded by the start of next week, in Mid-Childan time."

"I see. What are the bags you're carrying? I'll take some for you."

"Oh, thank you. They're not that heavy, but it's a bit cumbersome." She hands over some of the bulkier bags and she's right; it isn't heavy at all. "They're personal sewing materials. I keep losing my needles so I bought a new set. Though I think these may take some getting used to. They only had ones with extremely small holes or extremely large ones, like if you wanted to sew using rope or something."

"Rope? Which one did you buy?" You try looking in the bag, but you got the one with assorted fabrics.

"Both. I talked a lot with the shopowner until I was sure I knew how to make use of it. The most troublesome purchases were the fabrics though. By the time I got to the more expensive purchases, I was nearing the budget I'd set for myself. So I had to decide how much of each I could afford to buy."

"Oh?"

Tomoyo nodded. "I had about 2100 currents left, and roebuck skin cost 300 per square yard while the polyester cost abot 150." She paused and then shrugged with a laugh. "I thought about what I would use it for and just bought accordingly. And then I had 300 leftover so I bought an extra roebuck skin."

"That's good." You frown, wondering why you can't say more. You try to change the subject a little. "We haven't had one of our late-night parties lately."

"We've both been busy and tired," she returns with a somewhat positive resignation.

"We should do it again one of these days. Maybe this week, since we're restocking and don't have as many duties."

She looks at you as the space port comes within sight. "Come over to my room tonight then. We can look through the purchases together."

At this, you smile and nod. "That sounds nice. Really nice. I'll be there."

"I'll be waiting."

You share a smile with her and then turn to look ahead. The rest of the trip back to the Claudia is made in silence, but you don't mind.

Everyone starts to trickle back to the Claudia in the hours that follow, but you neither mind nor notice. You lay on your bed, thinking back on your day, eventually wandering back to thoughts of Tomoyo. Your history with her is joined and yet separate from the rest of the Mid-childan madness. You remember when you met in middle school... when she had been watching from afar as her then best friend Sakura was reunited with her boyfriend. You remember trying to draw her attention from it, as it had become immediately obvious to you that she was fighting an uphill battle with such feelings for that other girl.

You had told her that someone as appealing as her did no justice to the world to keep herself single while pining for a love that she could never obtain. Slowly, gently, you pried the snipped red string of fate from her pinky and showed her how to be herself above all else. When Tomoyo's absorption of a Lost Logia shard uncovered Sakura's magic as well, things only spiraled out of control from there. You were in love before you even had a chance to contemplate how or when.

The more time you spent with her, the less she spent with Sakura, and as such, the more she learned to think of herself as an independent from that which had stolen her heart. It was a slow process, but by the time high school had finished and Tomoyo had moved to Mid-childa permanently, you were the best of friends.

Even after you had met Reina, there was a closeness between you and Tomoyo that could not be denied. She cared for you deeply, as you did her. To a certain extent, she loved you, too, but neither of you had dared to act on it to this day.

That night on the Claudia, you hesitate, but eventually knock on her door. She calls for you to come in, and you do.

If this mission is your exile then, by God, you swore you would live the good life while you could.

--

**Omake F: Hayate/Reina**

"Ah, this is the only free time I may have for a while... and come to think of it, Reina-chan has the day off from work today. I think I'll just go back to my room and... give her a call."

You notice Tomoyo's frown as you say this, but she nods in acceptance. After all, who is she to deny your girlfriend your attention?

You return to your room and do nothing for quite some time. It is at Rein's concerned prompting that you finally order the transaction to go through.

Reina answers on the first ring. Her smile is so effusive, so loving, that you feel that you just might choke on the guilt that wallows inside you. Reina, oblivious to this, raises a hand to the screen and moves her hand as if she is caressing your face. You close your eyes, and you can /feel/ her touch. She has always been so gentle with you.

"Hayate... Have you been well?"

You open your eyes and smile at her. "As well as can be expected. We're restocking at the moment. Are you busy?" It is only then that you notice the deep flush staining her cheeks. It also then occurs to you that her shoulders are bare. "What have you been doing?"

She laughs sheepishly. Before answering, she asks, "Are you alone?" You nod, and she shifts the positioning of the camera. It zooms out and you see that she's in bed. The bed that you share. You feel your own tingles of embarrassment course through your body and you shift your legs. "I had the day off today. And I... couldn't stop thinking about you."

You look at her, imagine what state she must have been in all day, and you know you love her dearly. "How many times? What number are you on now?"

"Um... I... I keep stopping myself, because I know it's bad of me... so..."

"Not even once?" And she's been at this all day? You decide that a little mercy is in order. You look around and see Rein floating around trying /not/ to listen. "Rein, go sleep for a while, won't you? It's already late anyway."

She agrees with such readiness that you can't help but chuckle. You wait until you are sure she is sound asleep before you sit up to lean against the headboard of the bed and then look up at Reina. She is waiting, wondering.

"Reina, can you hear me?" You speak in a soft whisper, a gentle caress of the tongue. She nods, still watching you. "We haven't done this in a while, so guide me through it all right? Since I can see you're not wearing any clothes underneath that blanket, it's only fair that I undress, right?" She's several hundred pascals away, but you can feel her heart start to beat faster as if it were your own. "Tell me what order you want me to take them off." I shift the camera zoom as well, so she can see what she has to work with.

She leans forward eagerly, and the blanket slips a little. She reaches forward, but catches herself and lets her hands drop to her sides. "Unbutton your shirt."

You smile at her, having anticipated this, and slowly undo the buttons. You watch every twitch of her body, remember what each one meant the last time you were together, flesh to flesh.

You let the shirt hang open, pausing to wait for more instructions. Incidentally, the higher in the ranks I have been promoted, the more I have found that I enjoy the moments when I am /not/ the one in power. And Reina, who has never even been to boot camp before, never fails to become excited at the mere thought of telling me what to do. She is always so gentle though, I know I have nothing to fear when I am in this position.

"Take off your bra, but leave on the shirt."

You raise an eyebrow at this command, but as it is not outside your realm of abilities, you obey without question. In this way, you become half dressed, half undressed, and the real game begins. You begin the counterattack with a simple command. "Reina... close your eyes."

She obeys, a small smile already on her lips.

You fiddle with the communication options until you get the 'simulate mind-to-mind link' button and press it. Softly, you whisper, "Feel my lips against yours, my hands traveling down the length of your body. Do /not/ release. Not until I say so."

She quivers, and you know she is fighting her hardest to obey, and she becomes wetter simply knowing what is to come.

As you continue, you can't help but wonder if tonight is the night.

The night you can finally tell her you love her... and mean it.

--

A/N: God this chapter felt long. Mainly because I was writing every scene out. I know, I know, each one was fairly short anyway, but it's still taxing. And if you didn't follow my guidelines and read only one, then you'll have found that there's a sort of continuum about these Omakes and that if Hayate actually went through all of these scenes, then she is a bit of a player and a cheater. :( Which is why I said only read one. Which, depending on which one you chose, might still be bad, but at least not as bad. Don't forget to review and tell me which one you chose, as the one that was most popular will be the "canon" for this story (insofar as that was what Hayate really spent her day off doing). No one will be hooking up anytime soon, so no worries. I intend to drag this out a long time. As long as I can extend it. :3

As for class inclusions... well... that obviously wasn't the point of this chapter, but you do see some attempts at including economics (if you read Omake E with Tomoyo) in that Tomoyo had a budget constraint and had to choose the best bundle for maximum utility... I could have talked of light and photons but there are only so many places where you would be able to include that... Theatre... I've been discussing Latino theatre, and I didn't know how to fit that in, unless the residents were wearing zoot suits... and... yeah... this is a very bare minimal kind of chapter... again, calculus and mental illnesses are kinda iffy to start with in a story...

Starting next chapter, I swear I'll devote more energy to making what happens fit what I've learned (because that /is/ the goal of this story) so... look forward to it!

Again, please review! :O Reviewfood for the writing soul.


	6. Dreams Or Apparitions DOA

A/N: Bugger. This makes "winning" very difficult to decide.

A-1,B-1, E-1,F-2, All-3. … You see what I mean? Well then, I suppose I'll just mosey on with Hayate/OC… Actually, I really like Choice A, but Hayate/Reina is the "canon" for this story so… meh. More of the same it seems.

Oh, and sorry for the long delay. Had lots of tests to study for. Let's see, I last updated 9/28, so let's see what I learned about since then…

Theatre: Oooh! Melodrama! And the elements thereof! And Vaudeville… Burlesque…Minstrelsy…and Musicals… Wow, do I smell a crack fic or what?

Eco: Difference between economic and accounting costs… Marginal and Average Costs… Total Fixed and Variable Costs…

Astro: Light as seen through gas (absorption lines) or light from a heated gas (emission lines)… H spectrum (Lyman, Balmer, Paschen series)… Doppler Effect…Optic and Radio Telescopes…

Calc: Inverse trig (aka switching things around to make them easy to write off), L'Hospital's Rule (aka if it's otherwise impossible to handle, break it down one by one, reorganizing situations before going on to the next step), Integration by Parts (aka a child is the sum of both of its parents and is made up of a little from both), Trig Integrals (aka judge what method to use to solve something based on if it's odd behavior or normal, even behavior), Trig Substitution (use metaphors to make things simple, then apply it to the original circumstances), Rational Function (Divide and conquer)

so yeah, been busy. Now how can I focus that into a coherent chapter? I wonder… I had a test in the first two during the last two weeks and will have another Astro test next week. le sigh But enough about me. That's not why you're here, waiting for me to stop babbling.

The Magical What If

Hayate's Story

(SC2)

Ch. 6

_You can sense more than see her smile. Has a connection been born between the two of you? She caresses your face with the back of her hand, and you find yourself leaning into her touch. "The first time I met her, the first time I said her name on my lips, we kissed, just like that. Kissing is perhaps more guarded on our planet than the one you come from. It is an intimate ritual, because to kiss is to see into the other person's soul."_

_It is only then that you realize that that was what the feeling of her tongue was, the feel of her soul. Her memories were a continuum, a river that is ever flowing. And now they flow through you. You can't understand all of it, but there is one thing you understand for certain. You crave more. You want to kiss her again, to see what else is there._

_Not because she makes your heart race when you know she is looking at you or because when she says your name- no, the name of her last lover- you can feel your cheeks grow warm. Not because you know she is leading you down a dark and winding path._

_You are suddenly thankful that it is dark. You press forward. "Tell me more, please. Omeda."_

_The name that comes from your lips is foreign and sweet. You realize that it is accented in her language the same way she had just said your name._

_Compelled by a force beyond and within yourself, you find her lips in the darkness and kiss her again._

_She does not resist._

--

Hayate awoke in a cold sweat, silent, unnerved. She neither moved to sit up, nor relaxed in the safety and privacy of her own room. _'Great,'_ she thought, _'I'm dreaming about her now. God, Hayate, can you get _any_ worse with your timing skills?'_

It took a while, or perhaps a few minutes, but Hayate eventually sat up with the intention of washing her face and drinking some water. She shuffled across the room to the bathroom but found that the moment she looked at herself in the mirror, she had no strength to lift her hands to the faucet, much less lift those same hands up to her face. So she slid down against the wall and curled up in an upright position on the floor. Giving up took about all the energy she could muster.

"I've got to be the stupidest person in the world." Hayate paused, and then laughed at herself. Here she was, on an intergalactic mission, and she was small minded enough to think she was only the worst on a single planet. "The universe, the whole stupid universe then. I'm the stupidest, or at least the unluckiest. Twice in four years, no, perhaps in my lifetime, pining for people when I can't have them, no longer caring when I can."

Hayate sighed and shook her head. She started to close her eyes, but when she did, she recalled her dream, and recalled Omeda's lips on hers with such vividness, one might have believed it had actually happened. She forced her eyes to stay open.

"What am I going to do?" Hayate hid her expression behind her hands. "I can't… I shouldn't… no, I really _can't_ let anything happen between… between me and her. I have Reina. Reina… makes me happy. Reina is… dependable. Predictable. She loves me and I… love… her. God!" Hayate hurled a fist at the floor, later grateful that the fuzzy bath rug softened the blow. But it didn't soften the guilty tear that slipped down her cheek. She continued to mutter to herself, "I'm happy, dammit. I'm… happy. I want to be happy. Is that really so much to ask?"

But then, she had to admit, who was she really asking? Did God even listen to her? A sinner of the sexual nature, a sinner of murder, a sinner… through and through.

Hayate sat there, staring unfocusedly at the light fixture on the ceiling. Eventually, she decided that sitting there being useless wasn't going to help anyone, least of all herself, and so forced herself to stand. She faltered, staggered, but kept herself upright. Groggily, she washed her face, brushed her teeth, before checking the time and going to take a cold shower.

Although intended to keep her mind off of things, the pure coldness of the shower only served to remind her of the one she had not wanted to think about most.

She had to cut the shower short.

By the time she was walking back into her room, clothed only in a towel with a second helping to dry her hair, Rein was waking up. Hayate watched with amusement as the little second-in-command rubbed her eyes, not quite awake yet.

"Morning," Hayate greeted simply as she tossed the towels onto a chair on her way to her dresser. "Sleep well?"

"Good morning, Hayate-chan…" Rein was silent for a moment before asking, "How long did I sleep in?"

Hayate chuckled good naturedly, none of her earlier distress apparent. "You didn't sleep in, Rein-chan. I just woke up a little earlier than usual. You're free to sleep a little more if you want to."

"No, no, I'm up!" Rein flew from her miniature bed and to her own dresser that was fixed to the top of Hayate's. "If Hayate-chan is up, Rein-chan will get up too."

Hayate giggled. "Silly. You don't have to do that."

Rein paused, holding a shirt as she looked down at Hayate. Suddenly breaking into a large grin, she said, "Rein doesn't do it because she has to. Rein does it because she wants to spend every waking moment with Hayate-chan."

It warmed Hayate's heart to hear that, it truly did. But it also made her sad, knowing, recognizing how many people would say such things. How many more than the necessary 'one'. "Thanks, Rein-chan. I'm always able to get more done when you're with me, too. I'll be counting on you today, too, then."

Rein saluted with a silly happy grin. "Aye-aye, ma'am!"

They both giggled at that, and continued dressing for the day.

Later, as Hayate was putting the finishing touches on her hair, Rein called, "Hayate-chan?"

"Yes, Rein-chan? What is it?"

Rein floated over and landed on her usual shoulder perch. Her voice was quiet, far more serious than usual. "When you woke up this morning… did you have a bad dream?"

Hayate froze at the question, looking at Rein indirectly through the mirror. "I don't remember. Why do you ask?"

Rein responded quietly, "You didn't sound… happy… in the bathroom. I wasn't sure if you wanted to be alone or not though so I didn't… I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything."

"No, no, you're right. I did have a… a bad dream." Hayate smiled, but that smile faded as a snippet from her dream came back.

_"I can't. But if I touch 'Reinforce'," Your breath hitches as you feel her hand, cold but not unwelcome, against your collarbone. You can feel her pressing the cross-like emblem against your skin gently. "I can collect the knowledge that Reinforce gained."_

Hayate looked at Rein and a sudden fear clutched her heart. It was just a dream, wasn't it? It wasn't founded on reality. Omeda had never said anything like that… right? All of the secrets she normally confided in Rein, Omeda didn't have instant access to them… right?

"Hayate-chan?"

By the time she became self-aware again, she realized she was tucking her cross underneath her blouse. It made it look bulky however, so she unbuttoned the first few rows to make it more comfortable. She paused then, wondering if that didn't make her actions that much more obvious. Sighing, she freed the pendant again and let it fall gently against her chest. Fluffing the back of her hair briefly, she gave Rein a satisfied smile.

"Sorry, I was just trying to remember the dream. It was bad, but it's gone now, so I'll be fine. Shall we go make our rounds and see who else is up?"

Rein studied for a moment, and briefly, Hayate worried that the pint-sized tome had figured her out. But if she did, Rein hid it well underneath her usual bright smile. "Yes, let's go!"

o

"Something's not right." Hayate frowned and walked over, tapping the main screen as she turned to her crew of observers. "Why is the picture so blurry? And what was that jostle earlier from?"

"Uh… well, you see," the scholarly old man coughed and explained, "It seems that at the speeds we are going to stay on schedule, our shields are… under a great deal of strain."

"Even with magical enforcement?" Hayate found this hard to believe. Some of the most gifted mages of the century were on this ship and their shields couldn't even hold up?

"Ah, yes… that is to say, we manage to avoid and deflect the larger objects, but the smaller debris doesn't register on the shield's attention radar so… it… uh…"

"It lets the little ones through, huh?" Hayate sighed, looking again at the picture. "Then what was the jostle? A larger sample of the passable debris? But this ship is massive, it shouldn't be enough to…"

Another technician spoke up. "According to our reports, a family of little asteroids are migrating in our direction. They're returning home for the time being."

Hayate blinked, and then looked around to see if anyone else thought this was a joke. She was relieved to see that Nanoha had a carefully guarded smile of amusement on her lips. Turning to the technician, Hayate requested, "Dr. Rosenburg. Please explain."

"Ah, yes, yes. The jostle was from the first family, the Lyman cluster. They travel the farthest of the three clusters as they return to their orbit around the star some distance behind us. You see, the farther they've traveled, the more momentum they gain, especially as they near their destination, so the speed rocked us a bit."

"The speed did?" The Claudia was going faster than the speed of light. Did the asteroids' speed really compare? Hayate stopped herself and remembered that if they were heading towards each other, the impact would be that much greater. "I see. Go on."

"The Lyman cluster settles into the closest orbit around its star. The next is the Balmer cluster, which settles into the second level orbit. When it comes, its emission lines should be visible to us. Lymans also give off light, but ultraviolet photons require a different setting to view than what our cameras are set at at the moment. The last one is the Paschen cluster, which, if we were to stay stationary, would hit us all dead-on as we are, or were, in range of the third orbit level."

Hayate said nothing as she turned once again to the blurry camera. "It seems the Lymans knocked something loose. The cameras?"

"The lens." It was another technician this time. "Our lens for our mobile optic telescope was chipped, compromising its quality. We have a few guys down there now, working to improvise, but it'll take some time."

Hayate sighed. "Change it to a different frequency then. It's just going to give us bad eyesight staring at this one."

Quickly, as if recognizing that it should have been done far earlier, someone at the panels switched the screens over to infrared vision, which wasn't too different, but it was much clearer than it was before. And it was just in time for the Balmer cluster to appear on the radar. Apparently these were of much greater density and registered on the radar.

"Use the thrust and send us above the stream of asteroids. Hurry! I don't want to have to pay for ship repairs so soon after we made our supposed last stop."

"Yes, Ma'am!" The chorus and the result were simultaneous as Signum translated Hayate's orders into technical coordinates and degrees. The transition was completed just in time, as the screens observed the phenomenon of "migrating asteroids" speeding past, the speed likely faster than it actually was due to the speed of the ship as well.

Several minutes later, Hayate decided she wasn't needed at the bridge and continued her check-up tour of the ship. Originally intending to visit Tomoyo in the medical wing, Hayate frowned when her feet refused to budge from the doorway to a room that she knew was not Tomoyo's.

'_I shouldn't be here. I have to start… stop giving in.'_ Hayate took a deep breath, fully intending to walk away, fully intending to ignore the part of her heart that called to the other that she knew was just beyond this door.

She watched in horror as her hand lifted itself and started to press the security clearance code. _'Stop! Stop! What are you doing? I said stop! Something… someone… stop me! Please!'_

"Um… Hayate?" Hayate looked over, ultimately relieved at Rein's interruption. Rein continued uncertainly, "Reina-sama is calling… she said to not worry about it if you're busy but… well… are you?"

Hayate smiled, grateful for the timely distraction. She could always count on Reina. She let her hand drop to her side and started walking towards her bedroom. "Patch her through. Rein-chan, quick, do I look happy?"

"Honestly?" Rein looked at Hayate's false smile. "You've looked happier."

Hayate's false pretenses fell away and she suddenly felt as tired as she should have felt, considering how little she had slept. "I'm tired. If she asks, I'm just tired, all right?"

"All right…" The singsong lilt to her voice made Hayate aware that she wasn't quite fooling Rein, but she didn't really care. It was time for her Reina-type pick-me-up.

She flopped on her bed just as the screen opened up in front of her. "Hey, Reina. How ya been?"

--

Meanwhile, still in the darkness, Omeda stepped away from the door, her hope falling through as she heard Hayate's footsteps recede.

'_She's not ready.'_

Omeda turned, seeing the ghostly apparatus of her Shamal, seated upon the coffin that held her physical body. **She doesn't know what to expect.**

Signum's body formed from a wisp of luminous smoke. _'Why should she? She's young. So very, very young. She's a mere babe. Inexperienced. Unlearned. Why do you even bother with her?'_

'_Signum!' _Shamal admonished Signum, but Signum paid her no heed. And Omeda paid no heed to Signum's words.

Walking over to the coffins, Omeda paused to whisper a chant, opening her fist to reveal a hologram. A hologram of her Haiyatei. Haiyatei smiled and waved at her from the beyond. Omeda balled up her fist again, extinguishing the sight.

**I am old. Too old to care about living anymore. It is because she is young, and her race is that of short life spans, that she is that much more precious. Because she-**

'_Do you _enjoy_ watching them all die? Regardless of your feelings on the matter, you will outlive them all.' _Signum spared her old friend no mercy in her warning. _'I don't want to see you that sad again, Aundromeida. None of us do. Isn't that why-'_

Omeda glared, silencing her. **I isolated myself because I could no longer live on my planet. None of us could. Not because I refused to ever find love again.**

A third ghost of an apparition formed on another coffin, and Vita appeared to say her piece, though really, she had been listening the whole time.

'_Nee-chan would have wanted you to be happy. This Hayate girl may not be ready to accept you, but if she did, if she can make you happy, I'll root for you Omeda.'_

Omeda smiled in Vita's direction. She had always been close to her older sister, had always loved _Haiyatei _as the last and most endearing piece of their family. **Thank you, Vita.**

A/N: And That ends this chapter. :D. Again, sorry for the delay, I hope this makes up for it. One of the elements of melodrama is Suspense, and exaggeration of the importance of one's actions (i.e. Hayate berating herself). The Lyman, Balmer, Paschen cluster/series are seen in the Hydrogen spectrum… Yeah, sorry after all that, I couldn't fit in much else. Ah well.

G'nite!

P.S. Do you believe in reincarnation? :D


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Another long wait for what I suspect will be a less than satisfactory update but… ah, well, we plow on…

Disclaimer: I may have gone awhile, but that doesn't I suddenly picked up any new rights. I only own what is mine to own.

Pt. 7

"…and then she, haha, you'll never believe this, she-" Hayate smiled as Reina stopped abruptly and turned away from the monitor, yelling at someone offscreen before turning back to Hayate. "Oh my god, Hayate, I really hate to do this to you, but I gotta go."

"I understand. You're at work, so go off and do what they pay you to do."

Reina snorted. "With the amount of work I put in I should have a nice fat bonus in my hand right about now, but nooo, all the money's stuck up the boss' a-"

"Reina!"

Reina broke into a smile and waved at the screen. "Okay, I really gotta go now. Love you as much as ever, still can't wait 'til I can see you again in person. Take care and all that good jazz. Later, Hayate!"

Hayate smiled and wave, "The same back to you. Take care, Reina."

Reina nodded and the call disconnected. Hayate sighed and stood up, walking over to the door. There must be something that required her attention. She only just barely managed to stop herself from running into Tomoyo.

"Ah, Tomoyo, what is it?"

Tomoyo smiled, tilting her head to the side ever so slightly. "How is Reina? Well, I hope?"

Hayate smiled back, "As well as can be hoped for." As an afterthought, Hayate returned, "Is there something wrong? Tomoyo, you know if anything is ever bothering you, I'm-"

"I know." Tomoyo raised a hand between them to stop Hayate's insistence. "I'm fine, don't worry. Can I come in? I have something I'd like to talk to you about."

Hayate frowned, stepping aside to let Tomoyo in, checking the hall for any other visitors before closing the door. Tomoyo had stopped in the middle of the room, her back to Hayate, a sign the latter had come to know as an indication that she was about to hear something she didn't want to hear.

Hayate moved across the room to sit down, waiting for Tomoyo to begin. If she had been expecting what would follow, she didn't show it.

"The preliminary medical check-ups were faked."

"What do you mean? Omeda?" Hayate blanched at the way her tongue pronounced the name, but Tomoyo was too preoccupied to comment on it. "What, like she isn't human? That'd be unlikely, since she comes from beyond our known borders-"

"No. I mean, yes, she's clearly not human, but it's more than that. It's… odd. I've never seen anything like it." Tomoyo turned then, her eyes never leaving Hayate's as she swooped down to sit beside her best friend. "Her insides… her organs… her blood… there's nothing solid in there."

"Like a tin man?" Hayate was having trouble taking Tomoyo's tone seriously now.

Tomoyo shook her head. "It's more like… like a water balloon, but with various heats. In the center, there's her linker core, but around it is… I'm not even sure if its water or what. It might be-"

"Manufactured?" Hayate shifted in her seat when Tomoyo didn't deny this. "You think Omeda is not only not human, but made by a humanoid?"

"I'm… I'm not sure. All I know is that what we thought was her heartbeat count, was her linker core pulsating. What we thought was her blood pressure, was the speed of this liquid churning inside her. What we thought was her brain…"

Tomoyo didn't continue, and Hayate had a feeling she didn't want her to. Hayate looked away, eyeing a bright yellow strand of string lying alone on the floor. "…Maybe she's a living ghost."

Tomoyo looked at Hayate, as the latter looked up. "Have you ever asked her about where she came from? Perhaps… an accident…"

"An accident that reduced her to what she is today?"

"The universe is vast. What we don't understand, someone else out there might."

The two sat in silence for a while longer before Hayate stood up.

Tomoyo instantly asked, though she had already guessed, "Where are you going?"

"To ask her to talk about herself, to tell her story."

"And if she doesn't want to talk?"

Hayate paused at the doorway. "Then we're no farther than we would be if I hadn't asked. The very least I can figure out is whether she is a danger to the people aboard the Claudia."

When Hayate left, Tomoyo sat stock still for some time before quietly getting up and leaving the room as well.

A/N: Urghhh... I feel queasy... I think I may scrap this story and redo it when I've not only finished the classes (thus having a more well-rounded bgd on the things I'm putting into it) but I also don't have midterms and finals that need studying for. =_= Yes, I have a two week reprieve, in theory, but that's followed by two weeks of midterms right before finals. Urg. If I can restart this during my Christmas break, I will but... ugh... I'm just not up to it at the moment. Sorry. I'll leave this story up until I've had a chance to go back to it tho, so it'll still be here, wallowing...

P.S. I hope you enjoy Feito No Hana and Quack!Fate in the meantime tho. It seems shorts are all I have the ability to concentrate enough on atm... my head hurts...


End file.
